Blurred lines ramifications.

Robin Thicke, the weaselly face of the rape anthem “Blurred Lines”, along with his co-star Pharrell Williams, did not win their case against Marvin Gaye’s family – who brought out an allegation of them copying their father’s music in creating the song. This brought out an ethical ramification that had to be dealt in a law court before a jury.

In 2013, Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams worked hand in hand to produce the run-away hit single “Blurred Lines,” earning them over $16 million in sales and streaming revenues. The music video has been watched more than a hundred million times on both YouTube and Vevo, and has been parodied numerous times as well. Despite it being well known by the public, the similarity of “Blurred Lines” to Marvin Gaye’s 1977 hit song “Got to Give It Up” sparked controversy and ramifications.

The family of artist Marvin Gaye was angered by this; they believed Gaye’s work was unlawfully copied. Thicke filed a preemptive lawsuit to prevent the Gaye family from owning or buying any share of royalties. However, Thicke also claimed in public interviews that he was inspired by Marvin Gaye and, specifically, “Got to Give It Up” when he co-composed “Blurred Lines” with Williams.

In response, the Gaye family took Williams and Thicke to court. Discrepancies were apparent in Thicke’s account. In an interview with GQ, he said that he only helped to write “Blurred Lines.” But in court he outrageouslysaid that he was too high in the studio, and that Williams had in fact composed the song, and he had lied earlier in order to get credit. Williams claimed that, although Gaye’s music had influenced him in his youth, he did not copy Gaye’s song in his composition.

Blurred Lines” and “Got to Give It Up” are both empowered  by falsetto male voices that are high, shrill and happy. But Gaye’s copyright registration was only documented by hand on a sheet music that directs neither an upbeat mood nor use of a falsetto vocal technique.

Recognizing this contradictions,  the judge only allowed the jury to hear renditions of the sheet music and stripped-down, edited versions of the Gaye sound recording. On the surface, this would have made it more difficult for Gaye’s family to win: in comparison to Gaye’s recorded version of “Got to Give It Up,” the simpler, stripped down versions probably sound far less like “Blurred Lines.”
In March 2015, the jury ruled in favor of the Gaye estate, stating that while Williams and Thicke did not directly copy “Got to Give It Up,” there was enough of a similar “feel” to warrant copyright infringement. Gaye’s heirs were awarded $7.4 million in damages, the largest amount ever granted in a music copyright case.
While many commentators agreed with this verdict, others were concerned that it could negatively affect song writing within an entire genre. Musicologist Robert Fink, for example, stated that this verdict had the potential to set a precedent for “fencing off our shared heritage of sounds, grooves, vibes, tunes, and feels.” Musicians, artists, and writers often note that previous works influence them in their creative process, and that there is very little that is completely original. Thicke and Williams did not see the musical influence of Gaye as copyright infringement, but rather as inspiration that spurred them to create a new, original single.

There were ramifications on social media also due to Women’s sexuality in Blurred Lines is portrayed as being naturally animalistic but suppressed by society’s pressure to be a good girl. The song suggests that women just need a liberator like Thicke to free them of this suppression by

being persistent in sexual pursuits and of course “smack that ass and pull your hair” in the process of liberation.

 Every action by a woman is perceived as being an indicator that they want wild sex as illustrated by the lyrics “the way you grab me, must wanna get nasty” . At one point in the music video a stop sign is placed atop a woman’s behind while the lyrics complain about the hate of blurred lines, because according to Blurred Lines, even stop means go. Men’s sexuality isn’t portrayed as animalistic or predatory in the song or video, instead men are liberators that are helping women by fulfilling the desires that they know women truly want. 

This is emphasized by Thicke chanting “I know you want it” throughout the entire song. The music video also addresses a key issue of men’s sexuality, penis size. In order to provide the most satisfaction for women, men must have a large penis. Thicke makes sure you know what he is working with by spelling out “Robin Thicke has a big dick” with silver balloons in the background of his music video. This is also addressed in T.I.’s verse where he tells women he will “give you somethin’ big enough to tear yo ass in two”

Blurred lines creates an ethical ramifications on social media due to its vulgar language that is not appreciated by many people ,words such as ‘rape’ which is associated to the song, although not meant in its actual meaning gives rather an ethical issue that causes a ramification.

Conclusion

Williams and Robin Thicke haven’t been accused of sampling, stealing lyrics or melodies here, just the “feel” of Marvin Gaye’s Got To Give It Up. Let’s take a look back at beat groups of the mid-60s (their hair, their suits), and listen to their harmonies. Whether it’s the Hollies in Britain,

the Byrds in America, or regional heroes like Sweden’s Hep Stars, they all borrowed the “feel” of the Beatles. 

Reference.

1. Robin Thicke, Pharrell Williams and a Blurry Copyright Law? http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2015/03/17(rob inthicke-pharrell-williams-and-a-blurrysgpyjght-law

2. Blurred Lines’ Verdict: How It Started, Why It Backfired on Robin Thicke and Why Songwriters Should Be Nervous http: .51 b ard. om articles us• e s 6502023 blurre lines-verdict-how-it-started-why-it-backfired-on-robin-thickeand

3. Blurred Lines, Ur-Lines and Color Lines htjp://musicologynow.ams-net.org/2015/03/blurred-lines-urlines-and-color-line.html

4. https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/mar/11/blurred-lines-musical-inspiration-pharrell-williams-marvin-gay

1. The Blurred Lines of Copyright Infringement Become Even Blurrier as the Robin Thicke v. Marvin Gaye’s Estate Lawsuit