Emily Ratajkowski Explains Long Silence on Robin Thicke Groping

Emily Ratajkowski is opening up about allegations she made against Robin Thicke in her debut book, My Body. The 30-year-old told People that she stayed silent about the alleged incident on the set of the music video for his 2013 single “Blurred Lines,” in which she and other models appear topless, because she wasn’t famous.

“I was an unknown model and if I had spoken out or complained, I would not be where I am today, I would not be famous,” Ratajkowski tells PEOPLE exclusively at the CoinGeek Conference cocktail party this week.

She’s speaking out now because she knows people will listen, and she wants to give others a voice.

“I wrote a book about the evolution of my politics and that includes a lot of different experiences from my career and my life and the way that I felt and thought about those experiences have evolved,” she adds. “I hope people are able to read the essay and understand the nuance behind these kinds of situations.”

Ratajkowsi recalls what happened in My Body. “Suddenly, out of nowhere, I felt the coolness and foreignness of a stranger's hands cupping my bare breasts from behind,” she wrote. “I instinctively moved away, looking back at Robin Thicke.”

“He smiled a goofy grin and stumbled backward, his eyes concealed behind his sunglasses. My head turned to the darkness beyond the set. The director, Diane Martel's voice cracked as she yelled out to me, 'Are you okay?' ” she continued.

Martel has confirmed her story.