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You just can’t “Breakaway” from the drama.
Kelly Clarkson’s decision to publicly call out a Brooklyn store over its alleged rude treatment of her speaks volumes about just how upset she must have been, a source close to the singer told Page Six.
“If she’s actually calling out a store publicly, she must’ve been livid,” an insider exclusively told us. “You know something must have really bothered her because that’s just not who she is.”
“Kelly is seriously one of the most down to earth people you could ever meet,” the source said. “She’s usually chill and genuinely one of the nicest people ever.”
According to the source, “The Kelly Clarkson Show” host’s decision to publicly call out the store is especially surprising given her typically laid-back personality.
“She’s so approachable and has never let any of the fame get to her head.”
Clarkson “treats everyone with respect and doesn’t expect special treatment from anyone,” the insider explained.
“She’s not someone who goes around making a big deal out of nothing. She’s just a really good, normal person who happens to be incredibly famous.”
A representative for Clarkson did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment.
The comments come after the “Since U Been Gone” singer, 44, slammed Brooklyn store Art of Play on Saturday, claiming an employee treated her as though she couldn’t afford an expensive item she wanted to purchase.
Clarkson compared the experience to Julia Roberts’ character in the 1990 film “Pretty Woman,” in which Roberts’ character is snubbed by a snooty saleswoman at a high-end boutique.
“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,” Clarkson wrote on X.
The Grammy winner went on to call the employee an “idiot,” claiming the store had just lost out on a major sale.
However, Art of Play pushed back on Clarkson’s account Sunday, explaining that the item she wanted to purchase was a one-of-a-kind mechanical bird puppet named Molly that was permanently attached to the wall and not for sale.
But Clarkson wasn’t buying the explanation, as the former “American Idol” winner responded on X that she had pointed to a price tag for the bird before an employee looked her up and down and condescendingly told her the item cost $15,000.
“So you’re not only rude, you’re also a liar. Got it,” she fired back.
Clarkson also insisted she has always supported small businesses but argued that being independently owned doesn’t excuse poor customer service.
“It’s not that hard to be kind,” she wrote, adding, “I never blast people but you my friend were an exception.”
On Monday, Art of Play issued another statement defending its account of the encounter, claiming employees had explained to Clarkson that a nearly identical bird belonging to the original artist was available for $15,000.
The store also claimed it offered to show the singer another mechanical bird priced at approximately $2,000, but that she left before seeing it.
“We’ve reached out to Kelly directly to try and clear the air,” the store wrote, adding that it hoped the two sides could eventually laugh about the “misunderstanding.”
Clarkson has not publicly responded to the store’s latest statement.