Robin Thicke Reintroduces Himself To Mainstream America Thanks To ABC’s “Duets”!
Robin Thicke
Did you get a chance to see ABC’s new summer singing competition Duets? The show that has the mission of finding the ultimate duet partner kicked off officially the day after American Idol’s huge finale. ABC hoped that some of the Idol fans would join them for this new music show experiment. The jury is still out on if the show is going to be a hit or not, since it is still in its beginning stages,. But as Duets tackles the music competition format from a brand new angle one thing is for sure, everyone involved looks like they are having a lot of fun.
With that said, we would like to take the time to give a very heartfelt congratulations to our friend, Robin Thicke, who made his way on the show as one of the superstar judges. Robin is joined on the show by the other superstar judges, Kelly Clarkson, John Legend, and Sugarland’s Jennifer Nettles. In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Robin made it clear that he was truly appreciative to be a part of the whole experience.
“I don’t think any of us are taking it too personally, because we all actually truly respect each other,” he explained. “Jennifer Nettles, Kelly and John, these are great singers. For me, I’m the underdog of the group. I’m just happy to be part of it and give my best I can each week.”
Robin may feel like the underdog next to someone as accomplished as Kelly Clarkson, but the truth is, Robin has just as many bragging rights as any of the superstars on the show. As a Grammy Award winning singer/song writer and producer, Thicke has a lot to offer when coaching amateur performers. Robin has been writing and producing music since the age of 16 He was able to help coach artists like Brandy, Jordan Knight, Christina Aguilera, 98 Degrees among others,. This was all while he was still growing up as a young man and an artist himself. In fact Robin contributed “Fall Again”, a song he wrote with Walter Afanasief to Michael Jackson’s History album when he was just 22 years old.
As a producer Robin has worked with a wide variety of different artists in many different genres. The diversity on that list ranges from everyone from Neo Soul artists like Glenn Lewis, to Teen Pop artists like Jesse McCartney or BB Mak. But when it came time to introduce himself to the world as an artist, Robin always naturally leaned towards a progressive soulful R&B sound. After his breakthrough in 2007 with his platinum album, The Evolution Of Robin Thicke, Robin became an undisputed force in the R&B/Soul world as well. This is an accomplishment he is very aware of and discussed with The Hollywood Reporter. He does so with hopes that the exposure of Duets will help his music find a bigger place in the mainstream Pop music landscape like his collogues Usher and Lil Wayne.
“All my music lives on black radio,” he told the Hollywood Reporter, “So, TV is a huge opportunity to be seen by everyone in Middle America and all these other places where I don’t really tour.”
Thicke ‘s strong presence on what he calls “black radio”, or Urban (R&B/Hip Hop Radio), and Urban Adult Contemporary formats (R&B And Classic Soul Radio) began with the historic success of his 2007 single, “Lost Without U.” “Lost Without U” allowed Robin to break many records for R&B that year. He became the first white male artist to top the R&B/Hip Hop Chart since George Michael ‘s “One More Try” in 1988. The song’s continued success took him to super stardom. It also hit number one on two other charts; Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay and Adult R&B Airplay, simultaneously topping all three charts in one week. The single eventually spent eleven consecutive weeks at the top of the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Chart. Robin may call himself the underdog of Duets, but it would certainly depend on who you ask and what music they listen to. This is because Thicke continued to release hits through the years with more recent number one hit R&B singles, “Sex Therapy” (2009) and “Love After War”. (2011)
Out of all the stars singing along side the contestants on Duets this summer, Robin is also the only one of the superstars who plays a major role in producing nearly every one of the songs he has ever recorded. This has given him a very unique kind of confidence that he has developed as a performer. It is this confidence that he hopes to find in the contestants as well. He goes into detail on his desire to inspire in the Hollywood Reporter interview as well.
“The first pitch they gave me was, ‘Oh, you’re going to sing on every episode in front of millions of people.’ I was like, ‘Hey, I love to sing. I love to make music.’ So, it seemed like an easy decision to make, Then after I had already signed on, they were like, ‘Oh, by the way, you’re going to be judging other people.’ I was like, ‘Wait, I thought I was just performing. I don’t want to judge anybody.’ But, you realize it’s not about judging, it’s about inspiring, and trying to give anything I’ve learned in my career back to these young contestants to help with their future.”
Click here to see the Hollywood Reporter’s complete article about Robin on Duets. Also if you are one of the people who missed the premiere of the show from May 24th on ABC, you are in luck! You will find the complete first episode embedded below for your viewing pleasure! Also for those of you who are interested in more career details of Robin Thicke, we have added a collection of songs he has famously written and/or produced for other famous musicians, as well as a look at his own chart toppers! Be sure to catch Robin along with Kelly Clarkson, John Legend, and Jennifer Nettles on Duets, Thursday s on ABC!
Duets
Episode One “The Superstars’ Greatest Hits”
ABC
Key Songs Robin Thicke Has Written And/Or Produced For Other Artists
Brandy
“Love Is On My Side”
From Brandy
Atlantic Records
(Robin Thicke & Damon Thomas)
Michael Jackson
“Fall Again”
Epic Records
(Robin Thicke & Walter Afanasieff)
Jordan Knight
“Give It To You”
From Jordan Knight
Interscope Records
(James Harris, Terry Lewis, Robin Thicke, Jordan Knight)
Christina Aguilera
“When You Put Your Hands On Me”
From Christina Aguilera
RCA Records
(Robin Thicke &, James Gass)
98 Degrees
“Don’t Stop The Love”
From 98 Degrees
Motown Records
(Robin Thicke/Sean K. Hall/Christopher A. Stewart)
BB Mak
“I Can Tell”
From Sooner Or Later
Hollywood Records
(Robin Thicke &, James Gass)
Pink
“Let Me Let You Know”
From Can’t Take Me Home
LaFace/Arista Records
(Neal Creque, S. Hall, C. Stewart, Robin Thicke)
Raven Symoné
“Set Me Free”
From This Is My Time
Hollywood Records
( Raven Symoné, James Gass, Robin Thicke, Sean Hurley)
Jesse McCartney
“The Stupid Things”
From Beautiful Soul
Hollywood Records
(Robin Thicke)
Usher
“Can You Handle It”
From Confessions
Arista Records & LaFace Records/Zomba Label Group
(Robin Thicke/Usher Raymond/James Gass/Robert Daniels)
Jennifer Hudson
“Giving Myself”
From Jennifer Hudson
19/Arista Records/RCA Music Group
(Robin Thicke)
Robin Thicke’s Chart Topping R&B Singles
Robin Thicke
“Lost Without U”
From The Evolution Of Robin Thicke
Star Trak/Interscope Records
Robin Thicke
“Sex Therapy”
From Sex Therapy
Star Trak/Interscope Records
Robin Thicke
“Love After War”
From Love After War
Star Trak/Geffen/Interscope Records
