Newly released Art of Play footage shows Kelly Clarkson’s viral interaction with shop owners
She browsed for four minutes
Newly released footage shows Kelly Clarkson interacting with shop owners Dan and Dave Buck at Art of Play as she discussed the $15,000 singing bird automaton Molly Kelly wanted to buy.
Independent journalist Pablo Torres obtained the four-minute-long footage from Art of Play that captured Kelly’s moves while in the store.
In the footage, Kelly is seen browsing the store, notably stopping a few times to look at certain items and even picking up a kaleidoscope.
At the 2:52 pm mark, Kelly then stops in front of the now-infamous automaton bird Molly. Just a few seconds later, she then chats with one of the owners. The conversation lasts approximately lasts for 45 seconds.
She walks back over to the shelf to put down the kaleidoscope and heads to the exit. Right before she exits, she says something to the owner behind the cash register and he gestures to the bird before she walks out.
This saga started last Saturday, when Kelly tweeted about a negative experience she had at the Brooklyn novelty store: “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 slammed her experience in the store, adding: “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.”
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 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. For sure, check it out 👎
— Kelly Clarkson (@kellyclarkson) October 10, 2026
Art of Play then personally responded to her claims, explaining that Kelly Clarkson had asked about buying Molly, an animatronic bird.
They shared in a statement: “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 store continued: “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. We’re going to keep our heads down and hopefully, we can clear things up with Kelly someday. As a talented popular singer once said ‘what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.’”
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The shop also added that they explained to Kelly that there was a “nearly identical automaton is owned by the creator of the machines, a brilliant artist named Bliss Kolb who lives in Seattle.”
Art of Play claimed they told Kelly Clarkson that Bliss could sell her the Molly equivalent for $15k, or that there was another she could take home that day that cost $2k. However, apparently she “did not stick around long enough to see it.”
Kelly then slammed the owner as “rude” and a “liar”, sharing a picture to her story of the item seemingly with a price tag next to it. She shared: “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.”