Robin Thicke

R&B singer Robin Thicke cites taking chances, marriage and the drive to create music that no one can turn down – not even his label, as keys to his genre bending success. After releasing two successful albums including the critically acclaimed 2006 album " The Evolution of Robin Thicke," the singer says "I might sound crazy every once in a while, [but] I've got to take chances as an artist" of his forthcoming album entitled "Something Else." Looking back on his career Thicke looks to veteran artists like recent BET Lifetime Achievement Award honoree Al Green for inspiration. "People like Prince, Stevie Wonder and Curtis Mayfield came in and opened things up in a new way, they weren't afraid to take a chance." Thicke's chances have paid off quite well, especially after the hit single "Lost Without You" hit the top of the charts followed by the single "Can You Believe." What may come as a surprise to many is that Robin Thicke was on his third record deal before striking gold with "The Evolution of Robin Thicke." "I had like three deals before things finally started to work. There's something inside of you that keeps telling you ‘you can do it' even though there's a lot of things and a lot of people that are trying to beat that out of you." says Thicke who references Barack Obama's "Yes We Can" slogan. On his new album, Robin Thicke focuses on bringing forth quality music with songs like "Dream World" which he says is a personal favorite. "Dream World is basically about my ideal world. It's kind of like a blues version of when Nas and Lauryn Hill did ‘If I Ruled The World'." In a recent interview with Singersroom, Thicke says he took a different approach to recording "Something Else." Listening more to his surroundings and reactions, Thicke says inspiration can be drawn for songs simply by changing surroundings. Spending time in Paris and soaking up the energy of New York while working on "Something Else" Thicke was able to write about what people are going through, "You can't say ‘oh, I got to be in the studio at nine o'clock because I go to write a hit. It doesn't work like that" he says. "When Al Green wrote ‘Love and Happiness' he was going through love and happiness." Despite the push to create a ton of radio hits Thicke says he would rather make music that people can connect with rather than focusing on what's going to become a radio hit. He also knows that people are not going to buy garbage when they have real things to worry about like gas prices, jobs, and rising bills to pay. "You got to make something hot, [people] don't' have time for no garbage" says Thicke who credits 2008's top selling artist and collaborator Lil Wayne for changing the game. "You'll never hear Wayne quit, he's not trying to milk you for extra dollars. He's giving you free stuff then coming out with a hot album and doing shows." When its all said and done, Thicke says "Ain't no amount of money going to make you happy if your home ain't right" when asked about his marriage and the effects of being married in the entertainment industry. "She's my roll dog" he says of his wife. "I see my relationship with her as being so much past being married, when we're together she makes me forget about everything." For more on our exclusive interview with Robin Thicke click here. Robin Thicke's third effort, "Something Else" hits stores September 9th.