Watch: Kimbal Musk Promotes 'Plant A Seed Day,' Tesla-Focused Fox Business Segment Ends Abruptly

Elon Musk's brother and Tesla, Inc. board member, Kimbal, was booted off Fox Business Thursday after a bizarre interview with visibly frustrated host Stuart Varney.

The lesser known Musk brother appeared to troll Fox Business Thursday in what Varney hoped would be a discussion about Robyn Denholm replacing Elon Musk as Tesla's chairman of the board earlier this month. But wearing a cowboy hat and a grin, Kimbal made only generic comments abouts Tesla's future and instead focused solely on promoting 2019's "Plant A Seed Day" events.

"Hi, and thank you for having me here," Musk said from the stock exchange floor after Varney's introduction "I'm so excited about plant a seed day..."

"Now hold on, hold on, I know you want to get to Plant A Seed Day, I understand entirely Kimbal."

"Look, Kimbal, you are on the board at Tesla," Varney said, attempting to center the conversation around Denholm. "And you've got a new chair. Have you heard anything from her? Is she laying down law?"

"I am so happy for the future of Tesla," Musk said. "On March 20, 2019 we're going to do a plant a seed day, we're going to get a thousand families, a million families, to plant a seed..."

Once again, an increasingly exasperated Varney reminded Kimbal that the Australian businesswoman's replacement of Elon is "very much in the news" and that's the reason for his presence on the show. "You've got to tell me, is she laying down the law? Have you had contact with her? What's she saying? What's she doing on the board?"

"I am very happy for the future of Tesla," responded Musk. "Let me tell you about a kid on the Southside of Chicago..."

Varney immediately cut him off, sensing the story was headed back toward Plant A Seed Day: "Look, this is the most watched business news program in America and we have that reputation because we go at the stories of the day and we figure out exactly what's going on. Now I want to know what's going on at Tesla with the new board chair and you are on the board. Can you answer the question?"

"What is she doing? What do you know that she's doing so far? I don't need to know you're very happy about the future of Tesla I want to know what your new chair is doing at Tesla on the board," Varney continued.

But again, Kimbal Musk kept promoting Plant A Seed Day ahead of next March.

"What I'd like to share is I'm so happy about the future of Tesla and Plant A Seed Day in 2019 will be a way for companies across America to participate."

"Ah, come on. You think my viewers wnat to learn about plant a seed day? Do you really?" an incredulous Varney shot back.

Kimbal Musk
Elon Musk's brother and Tesla, Inc. board member, Kimbal, was booted off Fox Business Thursday after a bizarre interview with visibly frustrated host Stuart Varney. Screenshot: Fox Business YouTube

"Plant A Seed Day is going to be awesome. It's going to be amazing we're going to get a million families to plant a seed American cares about the future of America. Plant A Seed Day is going to get a million families to plant a seed on March 20, 2019," said a smiling Musk.

"Okay, okay. I'm wrapping it up, I'm sorry. Wait a minute, I am responsible to my audience. I'm sorry it's over. I will not be used," concluded Varney. Musk vowed that Varney himself would be a part of Plant A Seed Day come March 20, 2019.

But Musk was not done touting Plant A Seed Day. Since leaving the interview earlier on Thursday afternoon, he took to Twitter and appeared to defend his appearance through a retweet.

"Hahaha @kimbal mad props for what you did here, and I agree "Plant a seed Day" is vastly more important & relevant than mere speculation of Tesla's board dynamics," Musk retweeted, showing a comment frome one of his followers. Another Twitter user he retweeted concurred, "Maybe @Varneyco only wants to talk about Tesla, but after watching this I want to talk about #PlantASeedDay."

Uncommon Knowledge

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

About the writer


Benjamin Fearnow is a reporter based out of Newsweek's New York City offices. He was previously at CBS and Mediaite ... Read more

To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.

Newsweek cover
  • Newsweek magazine delivered to your door
  • Newsweek Voices: Diverse audio opinions
  • Enjoy ad-free browsing on Newsweek.com
  • Comment on articles
  • Newsweek app updates on-the-go
Newsweek cover
  • Newsweek Voices: Diverse audio opinions
  • Enjoy ad-free browsing on Newsweek.com
  • Comment on articles
  • Newsweek app updates on-the-go