Robin Thicke has been one of the most popular artists in the R&B game for going on a decade now, but even he would agree that his career trajectory took a significant jump when he dropped “Blurred Lines” back in March. Over the course of the last three months and change, the song has gone to #1 in 14 different countries and become the undisputed Song Of The Summer here in the United States. Tomorrow sees the release of his full-length album Blurred Lines, his sixth studio LP. We sat down with #THICKE a few days ago for the latest entry in our ongoing Track-By-Track series, and he was gracious enough to share the inspirado behind each one of the 11 songs on this collection.
Today, we’ll feature Robin’s Track-By-Track commentary on the first five songs on his Blurred Lines LP, which you can pick up as soon as the clock strikes midnight tonight: “Blurred Lines,” “Take It Easy On Me,” “Ooo La La,” “Ain’t No Hat 4 That,” and “Get In My Way.”
1. “Blurred Lines”
WRITTEN BY: Robin Thicke, Pharrell Williams, Clifford Harris Jr.
PRODUCED BY: Pharrell for the Neptunes
EXCERPT OF ROBIN’S COMMENTARY: “When I first made the record, I really felt there was something special. I had just made a couple of records with Will.I.Am and a couple of other very talented young producers, and I felt there’s something about this ’Blurred Lines’ song that just seemed special to me. But it was so different, I didn’t know if everyone else would get it.”
WRITTEN BY: T. Mosley, Robin Thicke, J. Harmon, J. Luttrell, T. Clayton, C. Godbey
PRODUCED BY: Timbaland for Timbaland Productions
EXCERPT OF ROBIN’S COMMENTARY: “It was the last record I cut for the album … It’s just one of those fun, ’get on the dancefloor’ kind of records. Timbaland is one of the great producers of our generation … I remember the Warrant video [for ’Cherry Pie’] had a big impact on me, so I just thought of that reference.”
3. “Ooo La La”
WRITTEN BY: Robin Thicke and Joe Augello
PRODUCED BY: Robin Thicke and Projay
EXCERPT OF ROBIN’S COMMENTARY: “France was one of the first countries that [’Blurred Lines’] was a hit in. My wife and I have had our most romantic memories in our lives in Paris, so I thought that it would be nice to write a song commemorating the adventures that she and I have had.”
4. “Ain’t No Hat 4 That”
WRITTEN BY: Robin Thicke, Joe Augello, Alan Thicke
PRODUCED BY: Robin Thicke, Projay
EXCERPT OF ROBIN’S COMMENTARY: “A cute little story. My dad was at my studio in my house, working on a couple of songs for a Canadian musical … I was in the middle of finishing this song, so I came in the studio and said, ’Hey Dad, give me a half an hour to lay this down.’ So we started, and he just kinda leaned over and said, ’Her temperament’s obstreporous.’ And I’m like, ’What is obstreporous, Dad? What does that even mean?’ Cause I didn’t go to college, I don’t know what that means!”
5. “Get In My Way”
WRITTEN BY: Robin Thicke, Projay, Max
PRODUCED BY: Robin Thicke, Projay
EXCERPT OF ROBIN’S COMMENTARY: “Nobody has really ever gotten in my way except myself. I don’t think anyone can get in your way except you, because if somebody does, you just make a right turn and go your own way. I’ve always struggled with that type of self-confidence, but this song and a lot of other songs I have written have helped me get through those periods in my life.”
Come back tomorrow to Robin Thicke’s Track-By-Track commentary on the rest of the songs on his new Blurred Lines LP: “Give It 2 U (feat. Kendrick Lamar),” “Feel Good,” “Go Stupid 4 U,” “For The Rest Of My Life,” “Top Of The World,” and “The Good Life,” as well as two bonus tracks, “Pressure” and “Put Your Loving On Me.”