On this day in 2010, American indie rock outfit Vampire Weekend got into a bit of trouble, following the release of their second album, Contra. The cover of the album features an apparently candid photo of a young woman from 1983. Founding Vampire Weekend member Rostam Batmanglij, who also produced the album, apparently found the image online while searching the photography platform Flickr.
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Later, in an interview, frontman Ezra Koenig noted that the woman in the photo lived in Malibu. It was later confirmed that the photo was taken in 1983 by a photographer named Tod Brody.
Apparently, no consent was given by the subject of the photo to be used for Vampire Weekend’s album cover. On this day in 2010, one Ann Kirsten Kennis filed a $2 million lawsuit against the band. She also sued their label and the photographer, Brody. She claimed that she had never given anyone permission to use her likeness. According to the former model, the photo was snapped via Polaroid when she was “a high-fashion model under contract with prestigious agencies in New York City.”
Kennis also said that any release forms related to the photo featured forged signatures that she did not provide. Kennis’ lawyer went on to say that she didn’t know that her image was used on the cover of Contra until her daughter brought home a copy of the album. Her lawyer also claimed that Brody did not take the photo at all. Instead, the photo was allegedly snapped by Kennis’ mother.
The Photo Scandal Between a Former Model and Vampire Weekend Went on for Over a Year
Despite Kennis’ claims, Brody insisted that he took the photo and owned it for almost three decades. Vampire Weekend found it on his Flickr page and purchased it for $5,000, according to Brody. Kennis’ former agent even came to her defense, claiming the photo was clearly snapped in haste during a casting session.
“This is the first time any of us have ever been sued, so we’re still learning how it works,” Koenig would later say. “There’s nothing we can say about it. We’re not trying to be mysterious. I imagine in the next few months there’ll be plenty to talk about. Given it’s our first time, we just want to do it properly.”
Later in 2010, Vampire Weekend would sue Brody to make him liable for any damages Kennis would receive from the suit. However, later in 2011, it was announced that Kennis dropped the lawsuit against XL Recordings and Vampire Weekend after they paid her a settlement sum. The suits against Brody were not dropped.
Photo by Joey Foley/FilmMagic
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