With the recent news that the courts have just awarded $7.4 million to Gaye’s estate after determining that Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams copied this 1977 chart-topper with their song "Blurred Lines", we are reminded reminded of how laden with problematic messaging this catchy tune is. We wanted to take a few minutes to remind you and to discuss this other serious issue with "Blurred Lines".
Let one of our interns, Arianna, explain:
In the summer of 2014, Forbes considered it a "shocking downfall”, but is the failed relationship and declining career of Robin Thicke really that shocking?
Let’s recap the past two years:
First, in 2013, Robin Thicke wrote a song called “Blurred Lines”. Since it was released there have been many critiques of the song already – as it stirred up the utmost controversy, was banned from several universities, and even earned Thicke the “Sexist Man of 2013” award. At essence, this song is mocking consent politics in the guise of light-hearted and intoxicated fun, while simultaneously being downright creepy; reminding listeners for 4 minutes and 23 seconds that we are all “bad girls”, “good girls”, and that Thicke knows we “want it”.
A short while after the song was released, so was a music video. Let’s just say it didn’t make matters any better. The video sent Thicke to the top of the charts – the “you should be fired from music” chart.
Truly, it was his response to the entire fiasco that really sent Thicke rolling down the hill of Hollywood. By defending himself in the name of “great art” and “stirring conversation”, Thicke took zero accountability for the problematic nature of his attitude towards women, his music, and his choices as a celebrity. After being heavily criticized by feminists and survivors alike, he even had the audacity to name his work as “a feminist movement within itself”. Because, you know, as a white, able-bodied, cis-gendered, heterosexual, class privileged man, he felt entitled enough to educate all the feminists on what feminism actually is.
His clumsy attempt to defend himself on the Today Show was stated as follows:
“When we made the song, we had nothing but the most respect for women and – my wife, I’ve been with the same woman since I was a teenager. So for us, we were just trying to make a funny song and sometimes the lyrics get misconstrued when you’re just trying to put people on the dance floor and have a good time, but we had no idea it would stir this much controversy. We only had the best intentions”.
Sorry, Robin, but being with the same woman since you were a teenager is not a get-out-of-jail-free card. It does not excuse you from being misogynistic. It does not mean that the sexist messages you are sending out about women are nullified. Additionally, intentions do not matter as much as impact, and the impact Blurred Lines made as a song and music video was nothing but offensive.
I think we can all agree that Blurred Lines was a mistake. Let’s travel down the road a few months later and see what happens…
Oops! A divorce between Robin Thicke and Paula Patton! How…unsurprising. I would have never guessed this would happen to a man who is so rich, famous, and inappropriate.
The poor guy was so upset about his divorce that he decided to name his next album “Paula”. The strange thing is that the album, released in June 2014, seems to be less about her and more about him and his determination to get her back, with the album single titled “Get Her Back”, and other songs titled “You’re My Fantasy” and “Whatever I Want”. All in all, the album is yet another example of Robin Thicke’s extreme lack of boundaries and lack of respect for women. If a divorce isn’t enough of a “leave me alone” message for Thicke, then I don’t know what is.
“Paula” sold 530 copies in the first week of being released; a troubling 2% of the total sales of his previous album. Forbes calls it the result of “bad music”, but I would call it the result of “bad boundaries”.
For a while I was feeling torn about the Blurred Lines song. Not because I was secretly moved by the degrading messages, but because the beat and the tune is so catchy. The dealbreaker for me is every time Robin Thicke opens his mouth – the song is then ruined. This is why I am so incredibly pleased that the world is blessed with the presence of Weird Al Yankovic who released an even better version of the song titled “Word Crimes”. Now this is something I can get behind. If you are like me, someone who thinks Blurred Lines is catchy, but cannot stand the lyrics or messaging, I highly recommend you check this song out!
Arianna is a queer femme from the lakes and forests of Massachusetts, a student of plants, stars, and feminisms, and a fierce lover of The Beach Boys.
Let one of our interns, Arianna, explain:
In the summer of 2014, Forbes considered it a "shocking downfall”, but is the failed relationship and declining career of Robin Thicke really that shocking?
Let’s recap the past two years:
First, in 2013, Robin Thicke wrote a song called “Blurred Lines”. Since it was released there have been many critiques of the song already – as it stirred up the utmost controversy, was banned from several universities, and even earned Thicke the “Sexist Man of 2013” award. At essence, this song is mocking consent politics in the guise of light-hearted and intoxicated fun, while simultaneously being downright creepy; reminding listeners for 4 minutes and 23 seconds that we are all “bad girls”, “good girls”, and that Thicke knows we “want it”.
A short while after the song was released, so was a music video. Let’s just say it didn’t make matters any better. The video sent Thicke to the top of the charts – the “you should be fired from music” chart.
Truly, it was his response to the entire fiasco that really sent Thicke rolling down the hill of Hollywood. By defending himself in the name of “great art” and “stirring conversation”, Thicke took zero accountability for the problematic nature of his attitude towards women, his music, and his choices as a celebrity. After being heavily criticized by feminists and survivors alike, he even had the audacity to name his work as “a feminist movement within itself”. Because, you know, as a white, able-bodied, cis-gendered, heterosexual, class privileged man, he felt entitled enough to educate all the feminists on what feminism actually is.
His clumsy attempt to defend himself on the Today Show was stated as follows:
“When we made the song, we had nothing but the most respect for women and – my wife, I’ve been with the same woman since I was a teenager. So for us, we were just trying to make a funny song and sometimes the lyrics get misconstrued when you’re just trying to put people on the dance floor and have a good time, but we had no idea it would stir this much controversy. We only had the best intentions”.
Sorry, Robin, but being with the same woman since you were a teenager is not a get-out-of-jail-free card. It does not excuse you from being misogynistic. It does not mean that the sexist messages you are sending out about women are nullified. Additionally, intentions do not matter as much as impact, and the impact Blurred Lines made as a song and music video was nothing but offensive.
I think we can all agree that Blurred Lines was a mistake. Let’s travel down the road a few months later and see what happens…
Oops! A divorce between Robin Thicke and Paula Patton! How…unsurprising. I would have never guessed this would happen to a man who is so rich, famous, and inappropriate.
The poor guy was so upset about his divorce that he decided to name his next album “Paula”. The strange thing is that the album, released in June 2014, seems to be less about her and more about him and his determination to get her back, with the album single titled “Get Her Back”, and other songs titled “You’re My Fantasy” and “Whatever I Want”. All in all, the album is yet another example of Robin Thicke’s extreme lack of boundaries and lack of respect for women. If a divorce isn’t enough of a “leave me alone” message for Thicke, then I don’t know what is.
“Paula” sold 530 copies in the first week of being released; a troubling 2% of the total sales of his previous album. Forbes calls it the result of “bad music”, but I would call it the result of “bad boundaries”.
For a while I was feeling torn about the Blurred Lines song. Not because I was secretly moved by the degrading messages, but because the beat and the tune is so catchy. The dealbreaker for me is every time Robin Thicke opens his mouth – the song is then ruined. This is why I am so incredibly pleased that the world is blessed with the presence of Weird Al Yankovic who released an even better version of the song titled “Word Crimes”. Now this is something I can get behind. If you are like me, someone who thinks Blurred Lines is catchy, but cannot stand the lyrics or messaging, I highly recommend you check this song out!
Arianna is a queer femme from the lakes and forests of Massachusetts, a student of plants, stars, and feminisms, and a fierce lover of The Beach Boys.
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