Someone give Robin Thicke a hug or something? Today Tuesday March 10th, (the singer's 38th birthday) also saw (and felt) the long awaited ruling in the "Blurred Lines" lawsuit between Thicke and producer Pharrell Williams on one side and the Marvin Gaye Estate on the other. Although expected since last Friday, the verdict was not passed downuntil today due to a deadlocked jury--who ultimately sided with Marvin Gaye's estate on the grounds that Thicke & Pharrell's hit illegally borrowed elements of Gaye's Motown classic "Got To Give It Up." On top of already being the most trying year of the man's life, he and P will now have to also cough up some $4 million dollars in copyright damages on top of $1.8 million and $1.6 million respectively in profits attributable to infringement (a total of $7.4 million in damages), where the total profit made off the song was roughly $16 million.
It's a clear vindication for classic soul artistry over current commercial success, one that couldn't be stave off even by Thicke's in-court session/demonstration. The question now, is how the judgement will ripple through the industry, where sampling is commonplace and stealing is no longer considered the highest form of flattery. Precedent or no, it's bound to have a chilling effect on sample-based music in general. We suppose time will tell, but you can certainly let us know where you stand on the matter in the comment section below. Also, join us in hoping that the rest of Thicke's 38th born day isn't nearly as terrible as it began.
