Grammy Award-winning singer and former talk show host Kelly Clarkson decided to beef with a small Brooklyn-based business over the weekend, claiming she was treated unfairly. And it raises some important questions about power and how to use it.
Clarkson visited “curiosity shop” Art of Play (don’t worry, I googled it — it essentially translates to “magic shop”) and afterward took to X to blast the store in a tweet that had amassed more than a quarter-million likes at the time of publication.
“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 wrote. “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.” She ended the post with a damning thumbs-down emoji.
This whole debacle foregrounds some complex questions about power.
Art of Play responded with a measured, if not a little pious, Instagram post explaining that the item Clarkson wanted to buy, an automaton bird named Molly, “is permanently attached to the wall and isn’t for sale,” adding, “However, the negative experience Kelly described on twitter would resonate with anyone who has ever felt judged in a shop.”
The post also addressed the backlash the store faced: “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.”
And thus began a tit-for-tat social media war between Art of Play and Clarkson, the latter of whom accused the shop of lying about Molly, and which is still ongoing.
The internet has been sitting back, eating its proverbial popcorn as the feud has gathered momentum. For me, as noted, this whole debacle foregrounds some complex questions about power. Chiefly, how do we ethically use our power? I’ll give you a hint: Clarkson, here, fell short.
Clarkson has extraordinary levels of privilege given her career and pop icon status — not to mention that she is cishet and white, with an estimated wealth of approximately $70 million. Clarkson has close to 9 million followers on X, where she initiated her consumer dispute. By all accounts, her wealth and cultural and social capital far exceed that of Art of Play and its magician twin-brother owners, Dan and Dave Buck.
Yes, privilege is intersectional and constantly shifting based on context. Even so, Clarkson’s post and the way she has doubled down since suggests she has a gross misunderstanding of how privilege and power work — and how best to use it. She has painted herself as a victim because the business allegedly did not recognize her immense wealth (don’t get me started on the ethics of someone having that much wealth in the first place). She compares herself to Julia Roberts’ character Vivian Ward in “Pretty Woman” — an economically, politically and socially vulnerable sex worker who finds safety and upward mobility through her association with a man to whom she initially sells her services. Safe to say Clarkson is the antithesis of Vivian Ward when it comes to money and privilege.
Of course, we cannot know exactly what transpired between Clarkson and the shopkeepers. Maybe the staff were rude? Maybe they did lie about Molly because they wanted to keep her for themselves? But her decision to publicly blast them on social media and unleash her fans on a small business — who again, according to her, victimized her by not acknowledging how much money she has — is a strange one.
This spat is, in my estimation, both a waste and abuse of power. Clarkson appears to have a limited and even harmful understanding of how it operates.
It feels especially odd coming from a celebrity of massive status who has built her brand and loyal fanbase on being down-to-earth, relatable and a real gals’ gal. This was a big part of her persona on her nationally syndicated show, “The Kelly Clarkson Show,” in which she often shared her own personal struggles and was affable with guests, irrespective of whether they were an A-list celebrity or average Joes.
This spat is, in my estimation, both a waste and abuse of power. Clarkson appears to have a limited and even harmful understanding of how it operates. In an increasingly inequitable and violent world, it is crucial that we use our power, individually and collectively, in service of challenging structural oppression — not in fighting over whether a magic shop will sell you a $15,000 automaton bird.
This entire debacle invites us to examine how power operates and how we can ethically and intentionally relate to our own power. As the feud continues to escalate, it remains to be seen how much this will ultimately affect the small business. But, to quote Art of Play, quoting Clarkson, “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” (Hopefully.)
The post Kelly Clarkson’s Brooklyn magic shop feud was a viral sensation — and a teachable moment appeared first on MS NOW.
Author: Source Author
From MS Now.
Leave a Reply