Kelly Clarkson calls Art of Play's not-for-sale account a lie

Kelly ClarksonSinger and television host, in a post on X

Clarkson says the employee told her the bird was for sale for $15,000 while she pointed at its price tag, and calls the shop's account a lie.

Responding to

Molly, the mechanical bird Clarkson asked about, was not for sale because it plays a role in the magic shows Art of Play hosts.

“That all never happened and now it's not for sale. Okay, cool. So you're not only rude, you're also a liar.”

Original post

Read the original post (opens in a new tab)Kelly Clarkson (@kellyclarkson) post: "Cool, cool. Sure, it wasn't for sale." · Kelly ClarksonFull post

Reporting

Open source (opens in a new tab)Kelly Clarkson says a Brooklyn store snubbed her. The shop says the item she wanted wasn't for sale. · NBC NewsFull article
Kelly Clarkson smiles in a close crop of a photograph taken at the 2018 Department of Defense Warrior Games.
Credit: Staff Sgt. Carlin Leslie / U.S. Department of Defense

Where this statement fits

Kelly Clarkson says a Brooklyn shop treated her as if she couldn't afford a $15,000 automaton; Art of Play says it was not for sale

Singer Kelly Clarkson wrote on X on October 10, 2026, that an employee at Art of Play, a Brooklyn curiosity shop, looked at her as if she could not afford what she wanted and offered to find her something comparable. Art of Play said the item she asked about, a mechanical singing bird called Molly, was not for sale because it is used in the shop's magic shows. Clarkson replied that the employee had told her the bird cost $15,000 and called the shop's account a lie. Co-owner Adam Rubin says nothing happened in the shop to justify her criticism, and silent security footage of the visit does not show what was said.

Read the full case

Case updates

Want the next important update?

Follow this case and get an email when an important development changes the record.

Important updates only. Free. Confirm your email to start. Unsubscribe anytime. How we handle your email.

Source and context

Original post

Kelly Clarkson (@kellyclarkson) post: "Cool, cool. Sure, it wasn't for sale." (opens in a new tab) · Kelly ClarksonFull post

About this source

Second post by Clarkson on X, replying to Art of Play's statement that the mechanical bird she asked about was not for sale. She says an employee told her it cost $15,000 and offered to find something comparable.

Archived copy (opens in a new tab)

Reporting

Kelly Clarkson says a Brooklyn store snubbed her. The shop says the item she wanted wasn't for sale. (opens in a new tab) · NBC NewsFull article

About this source

NBC News report on Clarkson's first post, Art of Play's Instagram statement that the mechanical bird Molly was not for sale because it is used in the shop's magic shows, and Clarkson's second post. The article notes that NBC is Clarkson's network.

Archived copy (opens in a new tab)

Before the quotation

Art of Play had said in an Instagram statement that Molly was not for sale. Clarkson writes that she asked whether it was for sale while pointing to a price tag on the wall titled Singing Bird.

After the quotation

She writes that she supports small businesses, but that being one is not a free pass to treat people as less than, and that the store is really cool while the person she dealt with is not.

How this statement is classified

Condemned

The label describes this statement's response within the context above.

Why this label?

The case centers on how Art of Play's staff treated Clarkson. She repeats that the employee was condescending and says the shop's explanation is false, so we used condemns.

Recorded on
Published here
People and groups discussed
Art of Play

More from this case

Read the full case

Share or embed this statement

Quote card: Kelly Clarkson, Kelly Clarkson calls Art of Play's not-for-sale account a lieDownload image (PNG)

The embed keeps its attribution link to The Dispute Index. Credit the image to The Dispute Index and link to the statement page.

Cite this record

Publisher
The Dispute Index
Title
Kelly Clarkson calls Art of Play's not-for-sale account a lie
First published
Last updated
Permalink
https://disputeindex.com/events/6666-clarkson-says-the-employee-told-her-the-bird

Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.

The Dispute Index. "Kelly Clarkson calls Art of Play's not-for-sale account a lie". First published: 2026-10-24. Last updated: 2026-10-24. https://disputeindex.com/events/6666-clarkson-says-the-employee-told-her-the-bird