- On a Tuesday afternoon, I show up to Grimes’s place. She goes by Claire Boucher in real life, but she prefers to go by the moniker Grimes or even better, c, which stands for the speed of light. After dating the richest man in human history, and especially since she gave birth to a son with him in May 2020, she’s had to come to terms with the fact that much of the world has erased her as one of the most fearless, adventurous solo artists of the past decade and instead began referring to her as Elon Musk’s girlfriend.
- Her new life has needed some adjustment for someone who has spent their whole lives hurling themselves at the world and creating art out of the combustions. She has a hard time keeping her feelings to herself. Last year, a seven-minute mashup dubbed “Grimes oversharing in interviews collection” was uploaded to YouTube by an anonymous user. A former World Series of Poker player and trained astrophysicist who Grimes met via Musk and fell passionately in love with during a lengthy conversation about artificial intelligence adds, “She has no filter—what is in her thinking pours out her tongue.” “It’s wonderful for me, but it’s clearly causing her problems,” I said.
- Grimes used to be charming in this way, but now a careless comment may haunt her child for the rest of his or her life, cause a crash in Tesla’s stock, or even reveal where she lives. There are a lot of people attempting to outmanoeuvre the guy who controls Tesla and SpaceX, but she’s no stranger to the doxers, stalkers, and paparazzi that come with being a pop star in 2022. (and founded the Boring Company and Neural ink). They announce the position of his private plane on Twitter. Drones are swarming his factories. Once they discover him, they quickly find her and then X.
- “People keep discovering where we reside,” she’ll explain later. “So we keep moving.”
- There was a Korean designer buddy of Grimes’ who created him this double-layered cream and black top with the word “algorithm” sewn on the neck and sleeves. I’m greeted with a kind smile and an apology for the sparse surroundings. In fact, she’s recently moved into a friend’s place. The home is dark and quiet since X is staying with his father till tomorrow.
- We take a seat in a secluded corner near the front door, the only area she’s had time to deck up with anime-themed décor she bought on Etsy during a late-night Ambien shopping binge. Princess Mononoke glares at me from a thin blanket behind her on the sofa for the next four hours while she and I drink some local craft beer and become a little intoxicated since we’re both light-weights. It’s a gigantic Death Note rug based on the violent 2006–2007 Japanese anime TV series about a teenager who can dictate the time and method of anyone’s death by writing it down in a book. (Netflix has it, by the way). Her current song “Shinigami Eyes” and the accompanying music video, which features Blackpink member Jennie, were both inspired by the popular manga series Death Note. As she sings with the voice of a demon infant, Grimes shouts, “I adore making friends with devils. To view them, you’ll need a pair of “special eyes.”
- Grimes is a great place to relax. She experiences time passing in a nonlinear manner. Her inspiration comes from art and ideas, and her enthusiasm is contagious. A unique Esperanto of academic theory, Silicon Valley 3.0 futurism and club kid vernacular, she talks at an astonishingly rapid pace. Then she jumps up and shows me her new tattoo: a pattern of milky-white slashes over her upper chest supposed to resemble alien scarring. In spite of her alien appearance, she comes off as very down-to-earth. She enjoys the show a lot, especially for someone who is so enthusiastic about A.I. After we’ve been talking about her next “space opera,” provisionally titled Book 1, for about 15 minutes, I hear what sounds like a lone wail from the second floor. Grimes seems to flinch, but I keep my mouth shut and go on. Anything might happen.
- It’s been a few minutes since we last spoke. The song “Sci-Fi,” which she co-wrote with The Weeknd and his longtime producer Illangelo, comes to me just as I’m about to mention one of Book 1’s highlights. This time, there are several distinct cries. I have two children. The child is only a few months old. My host’s face was frozen when I saw it, so I know she did, too. Grimes, I’m bracing myself for the most awkward question of my career: Do you have any more children?
- She clenches her fists and turns away, her face expressionless.
- After saying, “I am not at liberty to talk on these matters,” she suddenly adds, “Whatever is going on with family problems, I just believe that kids need to remain out of it, and X is just out there. X has to be protected.” I believe E regards him as a protégé and takes him around with him. … X is on the loose. He’s in a similar predicament. However, I’m stumped.
- The fact that I’ve upset a lady, much alone a new mother, is upsetting to me, and I’m ashamed of myself. Our professional ethics are at play here, and I can’t pretend I don’t know she’s having a secret baby with the richest guy in the world, who is hidden upstairs. As a result of her inviting me to the party. You can hear the baby crying up there and the woman’s pleas SHH coming from the other side of the room. We both burst into laughter at this point.
- Did she truly believe that I wouldn’t notice the sound of a baby?
- Greasy merely shrugs her shoulders. “Also, she’s a bit of a colicky baby.”” She covers her face in her palms and laughs again. You know, I’m not sure. How did I get myself into this predicament?”
- Thank you, Elon Musk and Grimes, for the birth of your second child. What a surprise!
- It’s likely that you have a few inquiries.
