What if everyone followed Sheryl Crow’s lead? It’s no surprise that the singer—long an advocate for environmental causes—drives an electric vehicle. Or perhaps I should say “drove,” as she announced Friday night that she’s dumped her Tesla as a symbolic protest against company founder/alleged wannabe world-emperor Elon Musk, and donated the proceeds from its sale to National Public Radio.
In a video posted to Instagram, the 1990s radio superstar shared a brief video of a black Tesla loaded onto the back of a flatbed vehicle, with **Andrea Bocelli’s rendition of “Time To Say Goodbye” as a soundtrack. Sheryl Crow, dressed in a casual jacket and fatigue pants, waved from the street as the truck pulled away with the vehicle.
“My parents always said… you are who you hang out with,” the caption of the post reads. “There comes a time when you have to decide who you are willing to align with. So long Tesla.”
“Money donated to [NPR], which is under threat by President Musk, in hopes that the truth will continue to find its way to those willing to know the truth,” the caption concluded, with a hashtag imploring followers to “Call1-202-224-3141,” the phone number for the US Senate switchboard.
This isn’t the first time Crow has sold a vehicle as a fundraiser for a cause she supports. Speaking with Vanity Fair in 2011, the “All I Wanna Do” singer discussed her decision to auction off her then ride, a 1959 Mercedes two-seater, to support schools in Joplin, Missouri, decimated during a deadly tornado that year. “My first instinct was to say, ‘Who can I get together to do a benefit concert?’ she said of the 14-year-old disaster.” But really, by the time you pay people’s expenses and taxes, you don’t wind up raising that much.”
The one-time HSN salesperson apparently switched to a Tesla sometime after that, apparently unswayed by then-arguments from more conservative sectors that driving an electric vehicle is a sign of weakness. Remember those days, just a few years ago, when purchasing an electric vehicle was a signal of where one stood on the political spectrum, along with a backyard compost bin and an N95 mask within arm’s reach?
But now we live in 2025, where the EV market’s biggest groundbreaker is impossible to separate from founder Elon Musk, a man known for alleged alignment with Nazis, a vocal desire to destroy democracy, and a distinct agenda against people who are transgender, among many other troubling acts and opinions.
(The latter view might be of specific interest to Crow, who dated disgraced and famously anti-trans athlete Lance Armstrong from 2003 to 2006, during which the couple were briefly engaged. “It’s a part of my past, but it’s hard for me to relate to it,” Crow said in reference to the relationship in a 2021 interview with Vanity Fair. “I just wish him well.”)
Musk has also been a vocal opponent of NPR news for years, claiming in 2023 that the outlet was “state-controlled” and threatening to reassign the outlet’s Twitter handle to “another company” when contacted by a reporter. In a tweet earlier this month, the tech magnate, who is also partnered with (or is controlling, depending on who you ask) President Donald Trump as the head of the new Department of Government Efficiency, said “Defund NPR. It should survive on its own.”
The bulk of National Public Radio’s funding does not come from federal sources. In 2023, $32 million of NPR’s $318 million budget came from public sources. (Audited financial statements for 2022, 2023, and 2024 are available on NPR’s website.) Donations like Crow’s make up about 13 percent of its revenue.
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The post Sheryl Crow Sells Tesla, Donates Proceeds to National Public Radio appeared first on Vanity Fair.
