Robin Thicke has a new interview with the New York Times to promote his upcoming album. Robin is winding up to overcome his failed stalker album, Paula. The interview touches on Thicke’s drug use and boozing (to numb the pain of losing Paula Patton). He also goes into the Marvin Gaye verdict a bit but not much. Mostly, Thicke wants you to forget all about “Blurred Lines” and Paula. Forget how he stalked his estranged wife with creepy videos. Never mind how he ruined all his remaining goodwill with a disastrous #AskThicke Q&A and starred in a #GetHerBack flower ad. Thicke is on a redemption tour.

Thicke says his new record is not about romance but about fatherhood. He got good advice from a friend, who must not have been paying attention too closely because he doled out advice too late. But Thicke says he heeded his pal’s warnings and stepped away from the spotlight. By “stepping away,” Thicke means vacationing, getting papped, publicly making out with his new girlfriend. April Love Geary is 20 years old, and she looks so much like Paula. What throws me off here is how Thicke references Marcel Proust right away:

Thicke embarrassed himself: “There’s a thing that Marcel Proust referred to as supersaturation. When the past, present, and future all become very clear and high-definition and surround-sound in one moment. My supersaturation came right after I performed on the BET Awards. I dedicated the performance [of the song ‘Forever Love’] to my ex. And I came home, and my best friend of 20 years, Craig Crawford, said, ‘I saw your BET performance.’ And I said: ‘Oh yeah! What did you think?’ You know — excited. And he goes: ‘I gotta be honest with you, buddy. You’re kind of playing yourself. You look like a sucker.’ And it hit me that I’d lost my perspective. What I thought was romantic was just embarrassing. And he said, ‘You should just go away for a while.’ So I shut everything down. I took some time off to be with my son, and to be with my family and close friends. And the more time I took off, the more everything became clear.”

Is he sheepish by his stalker album? “Look, my songwriting has always been autobiographical, and always will be. The Paula album was no different. I was struggling through my toughest time, and I decided to share it. And I remember my team and my record company didn’t want me to put it out, but they stuck by me. In hindsight, the only thing I would have done differently was, I wouldn’t have promoted it or sold it. I would have given it away. That would have kept the purity of the message intact.”

The drugs, man: “When ‘Blurred Lines’ first exploded, I had this chip on my shoulder: ‘Hey, wait a second! I’ve been doing this for 15 years, guys!’ And then, you know, I started to force it a little bit. The ego is a very dangerous place. I was supposed to be living the dream, and yet I was in a nightmare because of a crumbling marriage. I had finally reached the pinnacle of success — on paper, I had it all. But I wasn’t happy. And so you start grasping for something else to make you happy. Drugs and alcohol became a way for me to cope. And then you start saying things in interviews, desperate for a little extra attention. And then it becomes a sympathy tour.”

His GQ interview where he said, “What a pleasure it is to degrade a woman”: “I was in Ron Burgundy character, just telling a bad joke. I would never — that was just sarcasm.”

[From New York Times]

So … what Thicke regrets most about the Paula album is that he didn’t give it away. Well, that’s the only way anyone would listen because dude couldn’t sell copies! This redemption tour should be interesting. The sad thing is that Thicke had cred as an R&B artist before “Blurred Lines” blew up. Can he ever get back to being a serious musician (who isn’t degrading or stalking women with his music)? I doubt it.

Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet & WENN