Over the past year, Pablo Torre's career as an investigative sports journalist has exploded. While he was already well-regarded for his work on ESPN, it's been on his own show, "Pablo Torre Finds Out," where his nose for reporting has hit a new level.
Following his Pulitzer-winning work to unveil the Clippers' cap circumvention involving Kawhi Leonard, fans have been constantly wondering what more Torre could have up his sleeve to look into. Recently, he's released shows reporting on whether the NFL's Guardian Caps actually work and Tim Tebow's involvement in "predatory tactics and high-pressure sales" at Life Surge events.
Now, as of Sunday, Torre seems to be curious about a recent viral feud between Kelly Clarkson and a store in Brooklyn, New York.
Here's what Torre hinted at for his next investigation.
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Pablo Torre hints at next investigation
Torre posted to X on Sunday night hinting that he'd try to do some reporting on some rather bizarre celebrity news, with star singer Kelly Clarkson having had a back-and-forth exchange with a shop in Brooklyn called "Art of Play" over the last few days.
"Okay fine I will investigate the Kelly Clarkson bird story," Torre wrote on X.
On Oct. 10, Clarkson made a social media post — which now has over 44 million views — claiming that she was treated rudely while shopping at the store.
"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. "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."
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. 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 👎
— Kelly Clarkson (@kellyclarkson) October 10, 2026After the post went viral, Art of Play shared a response on its own social media pages, claiming that Clarkson had asked about an item that was not for sale.
"Yesterday, Kelly Clarkson visited us in Brooklyn and inquired about buying 'Molly,' a one-of-a-kind singing and dancing bird automaton who plays an important role in the magic shows we host here. Molly is permanently attached to the wall and isn't for sale," the store wrote. "We're going to keep our heads down and hopefully, we can clear things up with Kelly someday."
Rather than leave the situation be, Clarkson then doubled down on her claims, sharing a photo of the item she had inquired about at the store with a price tag next to it.
"Cool, cool. Sure, it wasn't for sale," she wrote. "That's the narrative Art of Play is gonna go with so the whole conversation we had when I asked you if it was for sale whilst pointing to the price tag hanging on the wall with the title Singing Bird didn't happen as you elevator eyed me saying in a condescending tone 'yes, it's for sale but it costs 15,000 dollars so if you'd like me to find something comparable for you I can.' That all never happened and now it's not for sale. Okay, cool."
"I obviously support small businesses because I was literally at a small business trying to purchase things. I love small businesses and know they are important and I always support them, but you don’t get a free pass to treat people less than in your store just because you are a small business. It’s not that hard to be kind. I never blast people but you my friend were an exception."
Cool, cool. Sure, it wasn’t for sale. That’s the narrative Art of Play is gonna go with 👍 so the whole conversation we had when I asked you if it was for sale whilst pointing to the price tag hanging on the wall with the title Singing Bird didn’t happen as you elevator eyed me saying in a condescending tone “yes, it’s for sale but it costs 15,000 dollars so if you’d like me to find something comparable for you I can.” That all never happened and now it’s not for sale. Okay, cool. So you’re not only rude, you’re also a liar. Got it ✅ And by the way, I obviously support small businesses because I was literally at a small business trying to purchase things. I love small businesses and know they are important and I always support them, but you don’t get a free pass to treat people less than in your store just because you are a small business. It’s not that hard to be kind. I never blast people but you my friend were an exception. Your store is really cool. Unfortunately, you aren’t.
— Kelly Clarkson (@kellyclarkson) October 11, 2026In another response, the store said the dispute was all a "misunderstanding."
"During the 5 minutes she spent in the store, [Clarkson] inquired about our mechanical bird puppet named Molly. We explained that while Molly is permanently attached to the wall and serves as a de facto mascot for our shop, a nearly identical automaton is owned by the creator of the machines, a brilliant artist named Bliss Kolb who lives in Seattle," the store wrote, per ABC News. "He told us he would be willing to part with Molly's twin for $15,000."
We explained all of this to Kelly Clarkson. We also offered to show her a different singing bird automaton, made by a traditional clockmaking shop in Germany, that she could have taken home with her that day. It costs about $2,000. She did not stick around long enough to see it."
Whether Torre actually tries to add context to the feud between Clarkson and the Brooklyn shop remains to be seen — he may have been joking in his social media post about a strange situation. But it wouldn't be surprising if he's willing to dive deeper into the exchange.
