Robin Thicke: People will remember me for my songs, not for the twerking act

Two weeks have passed since US pop star Miley Cyrus twerked against Robin Thicke's crotch at this year's MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs).

The buzz about them is still very much alive.

Indeed, their steamy duet of his chart-topping song Blurred Lines at the event last month is one of the most controversial performances in the awards show's history.

But it did not end there for Thicke.

More jaws dropped when a photo of the 36-yearold groping the butt of 20-year-old blonde socialite Lana Scolaro at the VMAs after-party were circulated on the Internet.

Amid the gossip, the American-Canadian singer remained poised and largely unaffected.

And he is not sorry for his actions.

"What was controversial about it?" Thicke joked on Sunday at a press conference in Kuala Lumpur, when The New Paper asked for his comment about the VMAs stunt.

"Miley and I knew exactly what we were doing. It is the (MTV VMAs). It is a place to shock and provoke.

"For me, I'm just happy to be getting all this attention because it gives people a chance to hear my music."

Thicke added: "When I die, the only thing that matters will be the music I leave behind and not some performance everyone will forget.

"They will remember the music and that will live on forever."

He was speaking before the regional media at Sunway Resort Hotel & Spa in the Malaysian capital, before his showcase at last night's MTV when The New Paper asked for his comment about the VMAs stunt.

"Miley and I knew exactly what we were doing. It is the (MTV VMAs). It is a place to shock and provoke.

"For me, I'm just happy to be getting all this attention because it gives people a chance to hear my music."

Thicke added: "When I die, the only thing that matters will be the music I leave behind and not some performance everyone will forget.

"They will remember the music and that will live on forever."

He was speaking before the regional media at Sunway Resort Hotel & Spa in the Malaysian capital, before his showcase at Sunday night's MTV World Stage concert, held at the Surf Beach at Sunway Lagoon.

Other performers at the concert included K-pop boy band EXO, US hip-hop group Far East Movement and Malaysian rapper Joe Flizzow.

Naturally, Thicke's family was also dragged into the whole hullabaloo, especially his wife of eight years, US actress Paula Patton, 37, who was his high school sweetheart.

The couple have a three-year-old son, Julian Fuego.

Despite his apparently roving eye - and hands - he called his wife and son "the two most important things in the world".

"I'm happiest when I'm with my son, nothing makes me happier than my little boy," Thicke declared to a collective "aww" from everyone in the room.

Secrets to a lasting marriage

As for what he thinks are the secrets to a lasting marriage, he said: "Respect. And you have to listen. You both have to change together. The most important thing is paying attention.

"How does she feel today? What does she need today? Focus on trying to make each other happy every single day."

He could hardly stop himself from gushing about her and even claimed he owes his sex appeal to her.

"I have been in the Navy Seal training of being sexy with my wife," he said, laughing.

"She always tells me what women don't want to hear or see, and how they want to be treated."

In his sharp black suit and armed with his smooth ways, Thicke charmed everyone at the press conference.

Even after being the target of non-stop potshots since the VMAs, he has not lost his sense of humour.

Thicke coolly and cheekily answered a question that touched on his "big d---" -referenced in his Blurred Lines music video, with: "You can't have a family without it!"

He also has a few tips of his own on being sexy. "Be kind, funny, brush your teeth and put on cologne," he advised half-jokingly.

"Sexy is always about being confident and kind and those are two things that I try to exude as much as possible."

Thicke doesn't deny that sex sells and has helped his career in recent times.

The racy music videos for his singles Blurred Lines and Give It 2 U both had plenty of scantily-clad women dancing provocatively around and against him, with one very happy Thicke lapping it all up.

"I wanted to become an entertainer, that's why my videos are more entertaining, less brooding and less serious," he said.

The plan seems to be working.

His sixth and latest album, Blurred Lines, released in July, debuted at the top spot on the Billboard 200 chart. It is his first No. 1 album since his first record, A Beautiful World, a decade ago. And it does not look like Thicke intends to shed his sexy persona any time soon.

"Right now, I just want to have fun and be happy and my music is a reflection of what I'd like to be," he said.

ashikinr@sph.com.sg

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