Robin Thicke Trivia: 42 fascinating facts about the singer!

Robin Thicke is is an American singer, songwriter and record producer.

Thicke has worked with several artists, such as Christina Aguilera, Nicki Minaj, K. Michelle, Pharrell Williams, Usher, P!nk, Jennifer Hudson, Flo Rida, Kid Cudi and Mary J. Blige, among others. Thicke worked on albums such as Usher’s Confessions and Lil Wayne’s Tha Carter III, while releasing his own R&B singles in the US including “Lost Without U”, “Magic”, and “Sex Therapy”.

Let’s see some facts about him!

1. Robin Thicke was born on March 10, 1977, in Los Angeles, California.

2. His mother is American actress-singer Gloria Loring, who appeared on U.S. daytime drama Days of Our Lives, and his father was Canadian actor Alan Thicke, who was known for his role on the TV sitcom Growing Pains.

3. They divorced when he was seven.

4. Thicke has an older brother, Brennan, who worked as a voice actor in the mid-1980s, and a younger half-brother, Carter.

5. Thicke also played a small role in The Wonder Years, Season 2, Episode 4 “Steady as She Goes.”

6. As a child, Thicke’s parents were supportive of his musical inclinations; his father helped him to write and structure his first songs. Yet, according to Thicke, his father would not pay for Thicke (then in his early teens) and his vocal group, As One, to record a professionally produced demo tape, wanting Robin to focus on his studies and graduate from school before committing to the pursuit of a career in music.

7. The demo ultimately was paid for by jazz vocalist Al Jarreau, an uncle of one of the group members.

8. Thicke’s demo made its way to R&B artist Brian McKnight, who was impressed enough by Thicke to invite him into the studio to work with him.

9. Thicke was signed to McKnight’s production company; “Anyway”, a song co-written with Thicke, was featured on McKnight’s second album I Remember You.

10. Thicke’s peers jokingly nicknamed him “Brian McWhite”.

11. It was Thicke’s association with McKnight, who Thicke counts as one of his first mentors, that led him to his acquaintance with Jimmy Iovine and helped him to land his first recording contract with Interscope Records at the age of 16.

12. Thicke moved out on his own at age 17, during his senior year of high school, earning a living and supporting himself as a professional record producer and songwriter.

13. Thicke has noted that while his parents did not attempt to dissuade him from his desire to be in the music industry, their own experience with the nature of the entertainment business made them leery in the beginning.

14. As Thicke’s list of credits grew so did his parents’ confidence in his decision.

15. While initially signed as a singer and artist in his own right, Thicke first made a name for himself within the industry as a songwriter and producer for other artists before releasing and performing his own music.

16. He also co-wrote the song “When You Put Your Hands on Me” for Christina Aguilera’s debut album and co-wrote and produced three songs for Mýa’s sophomore release, Fear of Flying.

17. Some of the first songs he learned to play and sing along with as a child were by gospel artists such as Commissioned, Take 6, and John P. Kee, studying their licks and harmonies.

18. Thicke has drawn influence from a variety of artists including Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Sting, Prince, Alanis Morissette, The Beatles, John Lennon, Bob Marley and Michael Jackson.

19. The Thicke original “When I Get You Alone” was performed by Guy Sebastian, the winner of the first Australian Idol 2003, during the competition and at the Idol grand finale.

20. Thicke co-wrote “Can U Handle It?” for Usher’s 2004 album, Confessions, with backing vocals provided by Paula Patton.

21. Thicke co-wrote and produced the song “Tie My Hands” on Lil’ Wayne’s multi-platinum selling album Tha Carter III which went on to win Best Rap Album.

22. Thicke wrote and produced the song “Giving Myself” for the album Jennifer Hudson which went on to win Best R&B Album.

23. In total, albums on which Thicke has been credited for his work (in capacities including writer, producer, arranger, vocalist, and musician) have sold over 60 million copies worldwide.

24. Throughout his career, Thicke has worked most frequently with long-time production partner Pro Jay (James Gass), whose contributions have appeared on all of Thicke’s own studio albums and whose name can be found alongside Thicke’s in writing and producing credits for other artists.

25. Thicke also often enlists veteran session guitarist and songwriter Bobby Keyes as well as keyboardist and music director Larry Cox to contribute to his projects.

26. At the age of 14, Robin Thicke first met actress Paula Patton in 1991 at an under-21 hip-hop club called Balistyx (co-founded and co-hosted by David Faustino) on the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles, when he asked her to dance.

27. According to Thicke, he sang Stevie Wonder’s “Jungle Fever” to her as they danced.

28. Thicke began dating Patton at the age of 16.

29. They were married in 2005, and have a son, Julian Fuego Thicke, born in 2010.

30. Thicke and Patton separated in February 2014, after almost nine years of marriage.

31. In the autumn of 2010, Thicke spent several weeks in New York City recording and living in a rented SoHo apartment which he had converted into a makeshift professional studio.

32. Thicke has said that he considers himself a soulful singer but does not like his music being described as “blue-eyed soul”, finding the term too pigeonholing.

33. Thicke is a close friend of fellow performer Usher.

34. Thicke was present for Usher’s engagement to Tameka Foster, serenading the couple with his song “The Stupid Things” as Usher proposed among family and friends.

35. In April 2013, Thicke performed at the wedding of Michael Jordan and model Yvette Prieto, surprising the bride. According to Thicke, Michael requested the songs “You’re My Baby”, “Sweetest Love”, “Jus Right”, and “2 Luv Birds”.

36. At the age of 22, after a fruitless involvement with Tommy Mottola and Epic Records following the end of his first deal with Interscope, Thicke resolved himself to work chiefly on material for his debut album, initially titled Cherry Blue Skies, planning to use his own money to fund the project.

37. In 2002, Thicke released his debut single “When I Get You Alone”. The track samples Walter Murphy’s “A Fifth of Beethoven”, which itself is a disco rendition of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony.

38. Thicke has cited Mary J. Blige, Usher, and Lil’ Wayne, among others, as those who subsequently reached out to him.

39. Reflecting on A Beautiful World in 2013, Usher stated to The New York Times, “I was blown away – I thought Beatles, Earth Wind & Fire, Shuggie Otis, Marvin Gaye – all in one album. [Robin’s] got a soul you can’t buy, man.”

40. Thicke toured with India.Arie and then opened for John Legend in late 2006.

41. On February 8 of 2009, at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards, Thicke took the stage alongside Lil’ Wayne to perform their song “Tie My Hands” from the Grammy-winning album Tha Carter III (the song was also featured on Something Else) which was followed by Thicke and Lil’ Wayne participating in a medley of “Big Chief” and “My Feet Can’t Fail Me Now” led by jazz musicians Allen Toussaint, Terrence Blanchard, and the Dirty Dozen Brass Band in tribute to New Orleans and the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

42. Paula Patton claimed in a court filing that her son Julian complained to her on January 2, 2016 about how hard he was being spanked by Robin Thicke. Patton then went and got Julian from his school the day after that call despite it being Thicke’s turn for custody, texting that he could not see the boy. Thicke denied that he has ever struck or hit his child in a manner that was against the law in his own court filing.