Kelly Clarkson’s viral feud with a New York City shop over a beloved bird automaton named Molly has evolved rather dramatically over the last few days.
The saga began over the weekend when the 44-year-old “Breakaway” singer shared in an X post to her eight million followers that she had visited Brooklyn games store Art of Play and interacted with a “rude” sales associate in an experience she compared to a famous scene in Pretty Woman.
Since then, the conflict has escalated to include not only several strongly worded tweets, but also leaked security footage from the interaction in question and the store owner’s desperate declaration that the singer “has put us in danger.”
Here, we break down what we know about the incident between the American Idol winner and the small business.
The tweet heard around the borough
Just drove all the way to Brooklyn to check out this store I thought looked really rad and had a few things in mind to buy and literally was looked at as if I couldn’t afford it and was told he could find something comparable for me. Wow, dude. You’re an idiot and just lost a…
— Kelly Clarkson (@kellyclarkson) October 10, 2026
“Just drove all the way to Brooklyn to check out this store I thought looked really rad and had a few things in mind to buy and literally was looked at as if I couldn’t afford it and was told he could find something comparable for me,” she wrote in the post Saturday. “Wow, dude. You’re an idiot and just lost a huge sale. But y’all should go check out Art of Play in Brooklyn if you enjoy being treated like Julia Roberts character in Pretty Woman.”
Following the criticism, Clarkson’s fans began to target Art of Play — described on its website as a “unique collection of home goods, puzzles, games, toys and books” that opened its flagship store in 2024 — in social media comments and online reviews. The backlash then prompted the store to refute the former talk show host’s story in a lengthy Instagram post and, days later, mark the price of the bird up to $15 million.
“Yesterday, Kelly Clarkson visited us in Brooklyn and inquired about buying ‘Molly,’ a one-of-a-kind singing and dancing bird automaton who plays an important role in the magic shows we host here,” the store shared in an Instagram post Sunday. “Molly is permanently attached to the wall and isn’t for sale. However, the negative experience Kelly described on twitter would resonate with anyone who has ever felt judged in a shop.”
The statement went on to say that all visitors are welcome in the shop, adding, “Imagine our surprise when our small local business was suddenly attacked by 8 million people who have never visited our store. It’s been a surreal experience to be the focus of such widespread outrage after just one mention by a celebrity.”
Although the store reposted several messages of praise for the business from customers, its statement brought speculation to the store as social media users pointed out that pictures of the bird show a label next to the item that appears to list a price tag of $15,000.
Round two: ‘So you’re not only rude, but you’re also a liar’
Hours after the store’s response, Clarkson — who had already been met with backlash for using her famous platform for her initial negative review — doubled down and called the store a “liar” in a post shared on X as well as her Instagram Story.
“Cool, cool. Sure, it wasn’t for sale,” she wrote Sunday night. “That’s the narrative Art of Play is gonna go with — so the whole conversation we had when I asked you if it was for sale whilst pointing to the price tag hanging on the wall with the title Singing Bird didn’t happen as you elevator eyed me saying in a condescending tone, ‘Yes, it’s for sale but it costs $15,000, so if you’d like me to find something comparable for you I can.’ That all never happened and now it’s not for sale.”
Clarkson continued: “So you’re not only rude, you’re also a liar. Got it. And by the way, I obviously support small businesses because I was literally at a small business trying to purchase things. I love small businesses and know they are important and I always support them, but you don’t get a free pass to treat people less than in your store just because you are a small business.
“It’s not that hard to be kind. I never blast people but you my friend were an exception. Your store is really cool. Unfortunately, you aren’t,” she concluded.
Cool, cool. Sure, it wasn’t for sale. That’s the narrative Art of Play is gonna go with 👍 so the whole conversation we had when I asked you if it was for sale whilst pointing to the price tag hanging on the wall with the title Singing Bird didn’t happen as you elevator eyed me… pic.twitter.com/9PEhUWnIOt
— Kelly Clarkson (@kellyclarkson) October 11, 2026
In response, the Art of Play shared another post clarifying that Clarkson only spent five minutes in the store and that she had asked “about our mechanical bird puppet named Molly.”
“We explained that while Molly is permanently attached to the wall and serves as a de facto mascot for our shop, a nearly identical automaton is owned by the creator of the machines, a brilliant artist named Bliss Kolb who lives in Seattle,” the store said. “He told us he would be willing to part with Molly’s twin for $15,000. We explained all of this to Kelly Clarkson.”
The shop said that store assistants offered to show Clarkson a different singing bird that cost $2,000 and was made by a traditional clock making shop in Germany, but “she did not stick around long enough to see it.”
“We’ve reached out to Kelly directly to try and clear the air. We really do wish her the best and hope that someday we can all laugh about this misunderstanding,” the store concluded.
Although Clarkson did not publicly answer the store’s second response, the saga only continued to escalate further when Adam Rubin, one of the shop’s three co-owners accused the American Idol winner of putting his employees in danger.
‘It’s asymmetrical social warfare’
Rubin, 43, told a scrum of reporters Tuesday that the fight with Clarkson was an “insane misunderstanding” that has led to unsafe conditions for the people who work in the Brooklyn Heights store. He said that the store has received threatening phone calls and online reviews from strangers.
“We are afraid for the safety of our shopkeepers,” he said, according to USA Today. “Kelly Clarkson has put us in danger.”
“Nothing happened in this shop to justify her scolding our shopkeeper on the way out, but I can let that go,” he continued. “You know, everybody has a bad day. But things changed when she used her platform to attack us. It’s asymmetrical social warfare.”
Molly gets a markup
Clarkson’s post sharing a photo of a $15,000 price tag on Molly seemed to confirm that the bird was for sale, but Rubin explained that the price tag showed how much it would cost to order a custom bird from its maker.
Rubin then said Tuesday that the store had raised the price for the bird to $15 million after the incident.
“So many people asked about it that we had put a price on it, but we talked to the creator when he came to fix the machine, and if someone showed serious interest, we would reach out to him about getting them an automaton. As you’ve noticed, we’ve raised the price due to popular demand. It now costs $15 million.”
He added: “They take years to make. This is not something that’s sitting in a warehouse.”
Security footage shows interaction
Just when it seemed the story had reached its head, independent journalist Pablo Torre obtained footage of the viral confrontation and released it on his YouTube channel Tuesday night.
The clip, which does not have audio, shows Clarkson picking up a toy on a shelf and holding it up before making her way through the store with her two children.
In the video, she stops to observe the bird sculpture and begins to speak to a store worker, who had a casual stance leaning up against a desk in the store. During a short conversation, Clarkson points to the bird and asks the worker a question.
After the brief interaction, the employee is seen pointing toward something else in the store as Clarkson looks at other items in the store. Clarkson then walks through the store and heads to the exit before turning around and speaking toward the shopkeeper with exaggerated hand gestures. Two other shop employees turn and watch her speak.
In more footage obtained by Torre, Clarkson is seen exiting the store and pulling out her phone as she walks out. Clarkson was in the store for four minutes and 50 seconds, Torre reported.
According to the footage, Clarkson posted about her experience at the store 15 minutes later.
The Independent has reached out to Clarkson and the store for further comment.
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