Kelly Clarkson's $15,000 bird row with a Brooklyn shop: both sides explained

Kelly Clarkson's complaint about a Brooklyn shop, Art of Play, has turned into a week-long online row over a mechanical singing bird with a $15,000 price tag (about Rs 41.5 lakh at Rs 276.92 per dollar, see USD to PKR). The BBC reported on Thursday 15 October that the shop's owners say they have faced threats and harassment.

What happened

On Saturday 10 October, the singer posted on X that she had driven to Art of Play, a curiosity and toy shop, wanting to buy a few things and was "looked at as if I couldn't afford it", according to NBC News. She compared the experience to the shop scene in Pretty Woman and told her followers to visit if they enjoyed being treated like Julia Roberts' character.

The object at the centre of it is Molly, a wooden singing and dancing bird that hangs on the wall. Clarkson said it had a $15,000 price tag and that she was told the shop could find something "comparable".

The shop's position

Art of Play replied on Instagram the next day. It said Molly is attached to the wall, is not for sale, and plays a role in the magic shows the shop hosts. The BBC reports the shop says Clarkson spent five minutes in the store and that an employee told her an identical bird could be bought for $15,000. NBC and Today add that the identical bird belongs to its maker, artist Bliss Kolb of Seattle.

The shop also says it offered her a different singing bird from a German clockmaker for about $2,000, which she could have taken that day. It said it was "surprised" to be attacked by eight million people who had never visited, and called the experience "surreal". It added that it hoped to clear things up with her.

Clarkson's position

Clarkson replied that the shop was changing its story. She said she asked whether the bird was for sale while pointing at the tag, and that an employee told her it was for sale at $15,000. Today quotes her saying: "So you're not only rude, you're also a liar." She also said she supports small businesses but that being small is no excuse for treating customers badly.

Threats, a new price tag and security footage

The BBC says the shop's owner told its US partner CBS News that Clarkson had put staff in danger, and that a man filmed himself shouting outside the shop this week. Fox News separately reported that the owners say people connected to the shop have been threatened and had personal details posted online. Searchable has not independently verified these claims.

When the BBC visited on Wednesday, there were more reporters than customers. Molly now carries a new sign reading $15m, jokingly calling her the world's most famous singing bird automaton. A shopkeeper declined to comment further. A news outlet has also released silent security video said to show Clarkson's visit, in which she is seen talking to an employee about the bird; it does not show what was said.

Neither side has publicly settled the disagreement about what was said inside the shop. Customers and neighbours quoted by the BBC described the shop as friendly. The key facts for readers abroad: the bird on the wall is not for sale, the $15,000 figure referred to a twin owned by its maker, and the $15 million sign is a joke.