Even though 2013 was a stellar year for Robin Thicke, with his single "Blurred Lines" and its album launching him to unprecedented success, 2014 is not treating the R&B crooner quite as well. He separated from his longtime wife/partner Paula Patton in February, and now his new album trying to win her back, Paula, is flopping... especially in the U.K.
According to The Guardian, Thicke's seventh studio album sold a measly 530 copies abroad, barely even cracking the Official Charts Company's Album Charts at No. 200.
In contrast, Ed Sheeran's album x, which held the No. 1 spot in Britain this week, sold 93,000 copies.
These numbers are dismal for any name brand recording artist, but the blow comes particularly hard for Thicke, whose last album Blurred Lines sold 25,981 copies during its first week last year, debuting at No. 1.
Meanwhile, Paula isn't faring particularly well in the U.S., either. According to Billboard, the new album sold roughly 25,000 copies during its first week on-sale, yet again a fraction of Blurred Lines. Last year, that album similarly debuted at No. 1 in America, moving 177,000 copies, largely on the strength of its title track and lead single, which sat atop the Hot 100 for 12 weeks.
The reason for Thicke's poor Paula sales are varied. Not only has the album received poor reviews (including here at Music Times), but the PR campaign surrounding the album has been largely mishandled.
An oftentimes controversial music figure, Thicke's VH1-hosted Twitter campaign #AskThicke was a disaster, with tweeters flooding the singer with antagonistic questions about his feelings and words toward women. Thicke has also been making very public pleas trying to get Patton back into his life, which have largely been perceived as stalker-y, or cringe-inducing at the very least.
Paula was released on July 1.
