More details continue to trickle out on Kelly Clarkson’s ill-fated visit to a Brooklyn novelty shop, this time with visuals. TMZ reports on new security footage received by podcaster Pablo Torre, which The Hollywood Reporter notes “doesn’t look great for Kelly Clarkson.” In the audio-less video taken at Art of Play on the day of Clarkson’s visit, the 44-year-old American Idol winner and “A Moment Like This” singer can be seen checking out items in the store, then eyeing a $15,000 mechanical bird named Molly that’s now at the center of the dispute.
In the clip, Clarkson seems to talk to one male employee, IDed by THR as a shop owner, about the bird before walking away to another part of the store. “The store owner appears to attempt to regain her attention, pointing to what appears to be another product on an adjacent wall,” as THR puts it. “She does not appear to respond, and the Art of Play owner moves on to assist another customer.” About five minutes after she came into the shop, Clarkson can be seen getting emotional with another worker at the entrance before finally leaving.
One of the store’s owners, Adam Rubin, tells Curbed that the whole thing has been an “insane misunderstanding,” adding that “Kelly Clarkson has put us in danger.” “Our friends are getting attacked, and our fans are getting attacked,” he says. “We’re concerned on behalf of our shopkeepers. … There’s so much hate speech, so many threats of violence.” Rubin notes that they’ve since raised the price of the rare artisan-made mechanical bird to $15 million and that “nobody who has ever visited this store in person is taking Kelly Clarkson’s side.”