Robin Thicke’s ‘Blurred Lines’ Deposition Unsealed: “I Was High and Drunk” Watch Video
No artist is ever put under oath when talking to a reporter. And maybe that’s a good thing. At least that’s the case when it comes to Robin Thicke.
As The Hollywood Reporter first revealed in September 2014, Thicke’s deposition in the lawsuit that accused him and Pharrell Williams of ripping off Marvin Gaye’s “Got To Give It Up” to create the hit song “Blurred Lines’ was a wild one. He admitted lying to the media about his role in creating the most popular song of 2013 and said he was high on drugs during press interviews. Now, months after a jury in March awarded the Gaye estate $7.3 million (later reduced by the judge to $5.4 million), the case is heading toward an appeal. And THR has obtained the video of the key deposition in the case. Watch Thicke’s candid answers below…
In the above video, Thicke said, “When I give interviews, I tell whatever I want to say to help sell records.”
Along with Pharrell Williams’ deposition, which THR also has obtained, the video shows what it’s like for artists to be under fire, forced to tell the truth with nowhere to hide. Thicke will soon go to an appeals court to argue that there were improper legal decisions that led to a jury’s verdict. Fortunately for him, these clips from his deposition won’t trail him there.
While wiping his mouth with a napkin, Thicke admitted during the deposition, “With all due respect, I was high and drunk every time I did an interview last year.”
“Were you drunk and on Vicodin when you did the Oprah show?” Thicke was asked by Richard Busch, attorney for the Marvin Gaye side, during the deposition. His quick reply: “Yes.”
“I didn’t do a single interview last year without being high on both,” Thicke admitted in the above video about being under the influence of alcohol and Vicodin during all interviews in 2014.
“Do you consider yourself an honest person?” Thicke was asked during his deposition. “No,” he replied.
In the above video, Williams was asked which cords are used in bluegrass songs. He replied, “You should check it out” and “I’m not a teacher.” Busch, the opposing lawyer, continued to probe him on his knowledge of chords and music structure, to which Williams replied, “I’m not here to teach you music.” The singer admitted that he is able to read a musical notation, but is unable to write one. When asked to name two musical notes and their duration, he replied, “I’m not comfortable with this” and “I can’t answer you at this time.”
In Williams’ taped testimony, the music superstar comes off as quite combative. As he gets grilled on whether he can read music, the situation becomes quickly uncomfortable. Busch, lead attorney for the Gayes, keeps pushing, and at one point, he gets Williams to dance around prior media comments about Gaye’s influence in the studio. Williams’ anger is palpable.
When asked to define a chord structure during the deposition, Williams said (in the above video), “I’m not here to teach you music” and stated multiple times in response to questions, “I’m not comfortable.”
A federal judge will soon enter a judgment that orders Williams and Thicke to pay more than $5 million. This will pave the road for a promised appeal. Before the case enters the next phase expected to focus on jury instructions, what musicologists were allowed to say, and the adequacy of the evidence, take a look for the first time at what the jury was allowed to see.
“I did not go in the studio with the intention of making anything feel like, or to sound like, Marvin Gaye,” Williams said during the deposition. The attorney further questioned the singer, “When you were creating ‘Blurred Lines,’ were you trying to pretend that you were Marvin Gaye?” Williams replied: “At that particular time, no. But as I look back, I feel that feeling.”
