Brooklyn novelty shop reeling from 'surreal' row with Kelly Clarkson over mechanical bird

ByMadeline Halpert New York.

Key points

• It remarked that during Clarkson's five-minute visit on Saturday, an employee suggested to her that she could purchase an identical bird for $15, 000.
• They additionally stated they had offered her a different singing bird for $2, 000 from a clock-making shop in Germany.
• While passersby in this Brooklyn neighbourhood of Cobble Hill looked inside, asking: "Where's the bird?", inside, the shop was packed with cameramen and customers.
• The kerfuffle lingered in headlines on Wednesday as a news outlet published surveillance video from Art of Play purporting to show Clarkson's visit.
• Shopgoer Emily Trantanella, 27, remarked: I feel like a pretty woman and I've always been treated highly well here.

On a rainy Wednesday afternoon, a novelty toy and games store in a quiet part of New York City was seeing much busier foot traffic than usual.

Art of Play has discovered itself at the centre of a social media storm since the weekend when Grammy-winning musician Kelly Clarkson complained online that the boutique store would not let her purchase a singing and dancing mechanical bird that was perched on the wall.

Meanwhile, the Since U Been Gone singer asserted she was "looked at as if I couldn't afford" the bird – which she stated had a cost tag of $15, 000 (£11, 000).

"Y'all should go check out Art of Play in Brooklyn if you enjoy being treated like Julia Roberts' character in Pretty Woman, " she remarked, referring to a scene from the 1990 romantic comedy film where Roberts' character is treated poorly by staff at a shop. This person imply she cannot afford various items.

In a follow-up post on social media, Clarkson remarked the store had informed her the bird cost $15, 000 and that they could find her something else "comparable".

Art of Play has defended how it treated the star on social media, saying the wooden bird – which is called Molly – is permanently attached to the wall and is not for sale.

They additionally stated they had offered her a different singing bird for $2, 000 from a clock-making shop in Germany. It she could have purchased that day.

"Imagine our surprise when our small local business was suddenly attacked by eight million people who have never visited our store, " Art of Play remarked.

"It's been a surreal experience to be the focus of such widespread outrage after just one mention by a celebrity."

Clarkson defended her decision to criticise the store on social media, saying: "I never blast people but you my friend were an exception."

When the BBC visited the store on Wednesday, there were more reporters than customers.

For context, a shopkeeper remarked they would not comment on the story anymore and just wanted to secure back to business as usual.

Molly still hung on the wall at the shop, this time next to a cost tag of $15m.

Meanwhile, the sign jokes that the sculpture is the "world's most famous singing bird automata!"

Notably, the store's owner has remarked he and his staff have faced threats and harassment after Clarkson's complaint, telling the BBC's US partner CBS News that the singer had endangered them.

This week, a man filmed himself yelling expletives outside the store, before accusing its employees of "racially profiling" Clarkson.

Notably, the kerfuffle lingered in headlines on Wednesday as a news outlet published surveillance video from Art of Play purporting to show Clarkson's visit.

In practice, the grainy footage, which has no audio, is remarked to show her wearing a yellow shirt, a baseball cap and a backpack while browsing items, including Molly the bird.

She can be seen talking with an employee – apparently regarding the bird as she points at it – and afterwards moving to leave the store. She comes back in to say something animatedly to the cashier.

But while the argument over the bird has gone viral online, some of Art of Play's customers had not heard regarding it before being greeted by news cameras on the premises.

One customer who was in town visiting his daughter remarked he was not familiar with the controversy.

For others, Clarkson's claims that those at the store had treated her rudely came as a surprise.

Kiran Ramineni, who lives next door, described Art of Play as a "very nice small mom and pop store" and remarked he had seen flocks of journalists there in recent days.

Shopgoer Emily Trantanella, 27, remarked: I feel like a pretty woman and I've always been treated highly well here. I really like it here.

Taken together, the developments around brooklyn novelty shop reeling from ' surreal' row with Kelly Clarkson over mechanical point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.