No. 1 on the charts — however no longer in enthusiasts’ hearts. Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams created a radio hit with 2013’s “Blurred Lines,” a track that has endured to drum up controversy years later.
“Blurred Lines” was once the lead single from Thicke’s 2013 record of the same identify and spent 12 consecutive weeks at the best of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, the longest run of any song that yr. It used to be qualified diamond by way of the Recording Industry Association of America in June 2018 and earned two nominations at the 56th annual Grammy Awards, including Record of the Year.
Despite its trade good fortune, the song has been heavily criticized since its debut. Thicke advised the Daily Star in 2013 that the lyrics were “most commonly throwaway amusing,” including that the music was about “the blurred line between a good girl and bad girl, people who need to get naughty.” Many listeners have argued that the unmarried’s catchy refrain — “I do know you wish to have it” — promotes rape tradition by disregarding verbal consent.
The grievance endured with the music video, which featured models Emily Ratajkowski, Elle Evans and Jessi M’Bengue cozying as much as the “Magic” singer, who was once married to Paula Patton at the time. Thicke reassured the Daily Star that his then-wife had no problems with the suggestive video. (The duo split in 2014.)
“She was fascinated by it in an instant and loved the video and sought after to watch it like 10 occasions, then she would jump on my bones,” he advised the outlet, joking that any one calling the clip sexist will have to get a hold of extra “original” insults. “To me, if my videos are sexist, then so are the paintings at the Louvre.”
At the time, Thicke said that both he and Williams “have numerous appreciate for women,” in spite of going through backlash for the music’s NSFW lyrics. While the producer stood by his work to start with, he later told GQ in 2019 that he was once “embarrassed” via the collab.
“My mind opened up to what used to be in fact being mentioned in the tune and the way it would make any individual really feel,” the 13-time Grammy winner defined. “Even regardless that it wasn’t the majority, it didn’t subject. I cared what they were feeling too. I realized that we live in a chauvinist tradition in our country. Hadn’t realized that. Didn’t realize that some of my songs catered to that. So that blew my mind.”
Even the “Lost Without U” artist has expressed some regret since the monitor blew up. In February 2021, he reflected on feeling “lost” while working on the music.
“I’d lost the intention, you know what I imply? I had to regain my point of view and my sure purpose of what my music was for — and what my lifestyles was for,” he advised The New York Post. “Obviously, I used to be dealing with some dangerous conduct. I was dealing with some personal issues on the within that treatment and self-realization helped me get to and to get through.”
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Though it wasn’t the response he used to be hoping for, Thicke famous that “Blurred Lines” unfolded “a conversation that needed available” about masculinity and consent. “It doesn’t subject what your intentions had been while you wrote the music … [if] people were being negatively affected by it,” he added. “And I feel now, obviously, culture, society has moved into a fully different place.”
Keep scrolling for a rundown of the 2013 track’s biggest controversies:
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