Elon Musk Invokes Eminem To Counter SEC Order Over His Tweets

Tesla Inc TSLA CEO Elon Musk invoked popular rapper Eminem in a filing with a federal court in Manhattan as he seeks to throw out a 2018 agreement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which requires him to obtain preapproval for his Twitter posts.

What Happened: In the filing, made Tuesday, Musk said that the requirement that Tesla lawyers vet his tweets was a violation of his First Amendment rights. 

“The [SEC] won’t let me be or let me be me so let me see; They tried to shut me down . . .” the complaint,” Musk said, in his complaint quoting Eminem’s 2002 hit “Without Me.”

See Also: How To Buy Tesla (TSLA) Stock

Why It Matters: Eminem’s original lyrics referred to the Federal Communications Commission, which had imposed a fine of $7,000 in 2001 on a radio station for playing a song by the artist that contained profanity. The fine was later dropped, according to a Rolling Stone report. 

In February, Musk was subpoenaed by the SEC following his poll on Twitter where he asked his followers if they supported him selling 10% of his stock.

Musk is seeking to end the SEC supervision of his Twitter posts that came into existence as a result of an agreement with the regulator in 2018. At the time, he had posted a controversial tweet about taking Tesla private. 

The SEC said last week Musk can’t get out of the agreement “simply because he has found complying with Tesla’s procedures to be less convenient than he had hoped.” 

Price Action: On Tuesday, Tesla shares closed 0.7% higher at $1,099.57 in the regular session and fell 0.5% in the after-hours trading, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Read Next: Elon Musk Reacts To Will Smith Slapping Chris Rock At Oscars