Culture

Elon Musk's Mom Is The Cover Model Of Sports Illustrated's Swimsuit Issue And She Kept The Whole Thing A Secret From Her Kids

The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit models we're accustomed to are in their 20s and are a size 0. But Maye Musk is here to flip the script, and she looks fabulous while doing it.

By Gina Florio2 min read
maye musk
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The annual Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition has officially arrived, and there are four different cover models this year: Kim Kardashian, Ciara, Yumi Nu, and Maye Musk. This is actually the first time Kim has been on the cover of SI Swimsuit even though she has been on the cover of just about every other magazine. But that's not the most groundbreaking first – it's the fact that Maye Musk, 74, is the oldest cover girl that SI has ever seen.

Elon Musk's Mom Is the Cover Model of Sports Illustrated's Swimsuit Issue

Maye Musk is a model, nutritionist, and wellness advocate who has had a long career in the industry. She's as beautiful as she is classy. At 74 years old, she did something she never thought was possible: pose as the cover model for SI. Maye went all the way to Belize for her SI photo shoot and wore a one-piece bathing suit designed by Maygel Coronel. She also wore a two-piece that's featured inside the magazine.

“It feels great,” she told the New York Post. “I’ve been modeling for 50 years, and I wasn’t considered a ‘swimsuit model,’ but now Sports Illustrated has let me know that they have a wide diversity of swimsuit models. I think it’s wonderful.” 

When Maye first put on the suit, there wasn't a mirror so she had no idea how it looked. "But when I came out of the dressing room, they all went, ‘whoa,’” she said. “It’s a high waist, so it tucked me in nicely. I look quite curvy. I just walked around like I’m a teenager.” 

Maye thinks it's important to show that women can be healthy and beautiful at any age, not just in their 20s or 30s. She felt comfortable and confident on set in Belize, but it wasn't a job that she told everyone about. In fact, she kept her cover girl news a secret from her three children, including billionaire and tech mogul Elon Musk. She told ET Canada that she was supposed to keep her cover a secret, and she knew that if she told any of her children, "they will tweet it out immediately they'll be so excited." Only when the SI Swimsuit issue was released today did Elon and his siblings find out that their mom was the cover girl.

It's nice to see some diversity in age in the SI Swimsuit issue this year. While not all the comments are in favor of Maye's cover shoot, we love seeing women of different ages showing their beauty.