An independent store feuding with Kelly Clarkson said the singer “put us in danger” when she criticized it on social media for refusing to sell her an expensive mechanical singing bird, which the store maintains wasn’t for sale.<\/p>\n
Art of Play co-owner Adam Rubin told USA Today<\/a> the store began receiving threatening phone calls and negative online reviews after Clarkson’s posts about her treatment in the store, in which she claimed she was treated “like Julia Roberts’s character in Pretty Woman.”<\/p>\n “We are afraid for the safety of our shopkeepers,” Rubin said Tuesday, adding that a neighbor called the police after one person entered the store and accused its employees of racially profiling Clarkson.<\/p>\n Rubin also told Curbed<\/a> that the singer’s post accusing the shop of snobbery was “asymmetrical social warfare.”<\/p>\n “You know, everybody has a bad day,” he said. “But things changed when she used her platform to attack us.”<\/p>\n The store now lists the bird at $15 million, a price Rubin said had been “raised due to popular demand.”<\/p>\n Independent journalist Pablo Torre has released security camera footage<\/a> of the interaction between Clarkson and the Art of Play employee. While the footage has no audio, Clarkson can be seen standing in front of the mechanical bird and getting the attention of a store employee, who speaks with her and points at something by the bird.<\/p>\n Just before she leaves, she is seen speaking to another employee behind the counter, gesticulating, and appears upset about the interaction.<\/p>\n How did the feud start?<\/p>\n The store in Brooklyn and the singer have been trading social media posts since the Saturday, when Clarkson accused an employee at the store of refusing to sell her the bird based on appearances and attempting to sell her a cheaper alternative to the one she wanted.<\/p>\n Clarkson wrote on X Saturday<\/a> that she drove to Brooklyn Heights to visit the shop, Art of Play, intending to buy “a few things.” But during her visit, she said she was “looked at as if I couldn’t afford it” and was told by an employee that they could find “something comparable” for her to purchase.<\/p>\n Responding to Clarkson’s accusation, Art of Play posted on Instagram on Sunday<\/a>, saying that the item she asked about was a “one-of-a-kind singing and dancing bird” named Molly, which is used in its magic shows.<\/p>\n The store said the fixture was “permanently attached to the wall and isn’t for sale.”<\/p>\n Art of Play, which specializes in unusual games, puzzles, curiosities and also hosts magic shows in a hidden theater, said it was “surreal” to be the focus of “such widespread outrage after just one mention by a celebrity.”<\/p>\n “Imagine our surprise when our small local business was suddenly attacked by 8 million people who have never visited our store,” the shop said.<\/p>\n Clarkson disputed the store’s explanation, sharing an image that she said showed a $15,000 price tag on the bird.”Okay, cool. So you’re not only rude, you’re also a liar. Got it,” she <\/a>wrote on X<\/a>.<\/p>\n In a <\/a>follow-up statement on Instagram<\/a>, the shop offered further details, saying it had explained to Clarkson that a “nearly identical automaton” could be purchased directly from the artist for $15,000.<\/p>\n “We explained all of this to Kelly Clarkson,” the store said. “We also offered to show her a different singing bird automaton, made by a traditional clockmaking shop in Germany, that she could have taken home with her that day. It costs about $2,000. She did not stick around long enough to see it.”<\/p>\n The dispute has divided social media users, with some accusing the shop of lying about whether the mechanical bird was for sale.<\/p>\n Food podcast host Joey Camasta commented on the store’s Instagram post: “I was literally there in August and saw Molly, there was a price tag on it. It most definitely was for sale.”<\/p>\n One commenter <\/a>criticized the store’s response<\/a>: “Their ‘apology’ was not only dishonest, it was so patronising and passive-aggressive that it gave us all a taste of what you experienced, and further proved your point. Rancid.”<\/p>\n Another <\/a>X user, Nigel Carreiro<\/a>, wrote: “since u been gone the $15,000 price tag has also mysteriously disappeared.”<\/p>\n Others questioned Clarkson’s take, accusing her of doubling down on publicly calling out an independent business.<\/p>\n “It seems as though someone tried to purchase a thing that was not for sale, they were re-directed to an alternative…and then stormed out and made a negative social media post about a small business,” <\/a>another commenter wrote<\/a>.<\/p>\n Others pointed to a social media post from Art of Play<\/a> from a month earlier outlining that the bird wasn’t for sale.<\/p>\n A source told People magazine<\/a> that the singer is usually “very private” and added, “private drama like this isn’t her.”<\/p>\n “She’s clearly so ticked off that she couldn’t keep quiet about it,” the source said. “Everyone is surprised by how much this whole thing has escalated.”<\/p>\n Yahoo has reached out to both parties for comment.\u00a0<\/p>\n Clarkson moved from Los Angeles to New York City in 2023, relocating The Kelly Clarkson Show there. She announced in February that the show would end after seven seasons, with its final episode airing in August, the same month her Las Vegas residency concluded. Clarkson is currently appearing as a coach on Season 30 of The Voice.<\/p>\n Clarkson’s dispute follows a number of high-profile clashes between celebrities and businesses. In 2016, Zendaya <\/a>accused a grocery store employee<\/a> of treating her unfairly while she was trying to purchase gift cards, saying she believed the encounter was racially motivated.<\/p>\n In 2005, Oprah Winfrey criticized luxury retailer Herm\u00e8s<\/a>, alleging she was turned away from its Paris store 15 minutes after closing time, even though other shoppers were still inside. The CEO of Herm\u00e8s USA later apologized<\/a> on her show, describing the employee who turned her away as “very, very rigid.”<\/p>\n