In a recent interview, Errol Musk, the father of Elon Musk, challenged his son’s narrative about growing up in a “middle-income” household.

Errol, 79, opened up on the Wide Awake Podcast, revealing that Elon was actually born into luxury, not a modest background.

A Privileged Childhood in South Africa

Errol Musk shared details about Elon’s early years, explaining how the family enjoyed a wealthy lifestyle in South Africa.

As an engineer and property developer, Errol’s success provided his children with a lavish existence.

After Errol and his wife Maye divorced in 1980, Elon and his younger brother Kimbal moved into their father’s grand mansion in Waterkloof, Pretoria.

This mansion, once the headquarters for the United Nations in South Africa, now serves as the residence of the European Union ambassador.

Errol described the house as “enormous,” with luxurious amenities such as eight bedrooms, a gym, jacuzzi, tennis court, and snooker room.

The property had air rights over the city, ensuring no buildings obstructed their view. Errol emphasized that the property was so vast, he rarely even ventured into the garden.

A Life of Luxury and Privileges

Growing up, Elon and Kimbal enjoyed the privileges that came with their father’s wealth.

Errol revealed that his sons were chauffeured to school in Rolls Royces, took private jet vacations abroad, and had their own yacht and motorbikes.

Additionally, the boys regularly visited Errol’s expansive horse farm in Sandton and dined at a popular steakhouse.

According to Errol, this privileged lifestyle was the norm for Elon and Kimbal, with the Musk family always being in a position of wealth.

Elon Musk’s Self-Made Narrative

Despite the evident luxury of his childhood, Elon Musk has consistently portrayed his success as the result of hard work and self-determination.

He has often spoken about leaving South Africa at 17 with only a backpack and a suitcase of books.

Elon went on to study in Canada and later settled in the U.S., where he achieved success with companies like Tesla, SpaceX, and PayPal.

In a 2023 tweet, Elon stated, “I grew up in a lower, transitioning to upper, middle-income situation, but did not have a happy childhood.

Haven’t inherited anything ever from anyone, nor has anyone given me a large financial gift.”

Elon has also denied claims that his father was involved in the emerald trade, a story that Errol has refuted, calling his son’s statements about the emerald mines “lies.”

What’s Your Take on Elon Musk’s Upbringing?

Given Errol Musk’s comments and Elon’s own version of events, the debate about his upbringing continues to spark interest.

What do you think? Was Elon Musk’s rise to success truly self-made, or was it influenced by his privileged background? Feel free to share your thoughts or join the conversation.

This article was published on TDPel Media. Thanks for reading!

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