The curious case of Vampire Weekend's Contra cover has been resolved... after the band coughed up some cash for the woman who unknowingly modeled for VW's 2010 album cover. As The Amp previously reported, Vampire Weekend licensed a 1983 Polaroid of Polo-wearing model Ann Kirsten Kennis for Contra, only Kennis had no idea her image was being used until her daughter spotted the cover and promptly alerted her mom, who then promptly alerted her lawyer, who then promptly wrote up a lawsuit against Vampire Weekend. The financial details of the settlement were not revealed, but it was probably less than the $2 million Kennis was originally seeking and significantly more than the $5,000 the band paid photographer Tod Brody to use the photo.
While Kennis' lawsuit against Vampire Weekend has been dismissed, this saga is far from over. Kennis also sued Brody, the photographer who claimed he took the Polaroid (Kennis swears a family member snapped it and sent it to a modeling agency), while Vampire Weekend and their record label issued a counter-claim against Brody after discovering that he didn't have the rights to legally license the Kennis photograph. According to Photo District News (via Vulture), VW's counter-suit against Brody has not been dismissed, and Brody (who was missing for a stretch back in December) is now representing himself after splitting from his legal team.