Fake Elon Musk at event enrages Chinese attendees hoping to meet the real one
- Gary Kong, an entrepreneur hosting the event to launch his magazine, says that he was expecting Musk to attend but that he never guaranteed his presence
- Reports on Chinese social media describe the crowd becoming embarrassed and outraged after a celebrity impersonator appears and then leaves
A Chinese entrepreneur and community leader in New York City’s Flushing neighbourhood is facing allegations of falsely publicising Elon Musk, the eccentric billionaire boss of Twitter, Tesla and SpaceX, as the guest of honour at his magazine’s launch party to attract larger crowds but using a celebrity impersonator to deceive his guests.
Gary Kong, president of the Sino American Commerce Association, a not-for-profit corporation in Flushing aimed at promoting China-US friendship, hosted the celebration to mark publication of the first issue of Wall St Magazine at the James Hotel in Manhattan on April 27.
According to local media reports, over 120 Chinese attendees started gathering in the hotel lobby well before 7.00pm to wait to catch a glimpse of Musk.
But it wasn’t until 9.30pm when a man resembling Musk entered the ballroom, surrounded by bodyguards. Reports suggest that the man quickly unveiled the magazine and presented some awards after being mobbed by some attendees who wanted to shake hands and take photographs.
It was only after the individual left that some in the crowd pointed out that his appearance and voice were not similar to Musk’s, enraging and embarrassing them as they realised that the celebrity was a fake.