Image Credit: Jakubaszek/Getty Images
Vampire Weekend have heard the Paul Simon comparisons one or two thousand times before, so it makes sense that frontman Ezra Koenig would record a version “Papa Hobo,” from Simon’s self-titled 1972 solo album. Give it a listen here:
Former model Ann Kirsten Kennis was surprised to see her face on the front cover of Vampire Weekend‘s Contra when her teenage daughter brought the album home this year. “Her daughter came home one day and said, ‘Hi, Mom, see your picture?’” attorney Alan Neigher, who is representing Kennis in her $2 million lawsuit against the band for allegedly using her image without permission, tells EW.
Kennis retired from modeling years ago and now lives in Connecticut with her husband and daughter. According to her lawyer, the photo was taken in 1983, but not as part of her professional career. “It was taken by her family,” Neigher says. “It was a Polaroid, not a modeling picture.” So how did it wind up on the cover of a No. 1 hit album? Kennis isn’t sure. “Her mother was a chronic Polaroid snapshot taker, and used to sell whole archives of photographs to these shops, five bucks a hundred or whatever,” says Neigher. “Her mother may have given away to a charity bazaar a whole ream of photographs. We just really don’t know…She has no idea how that photograph got into the photographer’s hands.”
“The photographer” is Tod Brody, who is also named as a defendant in the lawsuit. He laughed out loud when told of Kennis’ story. “Ms. Kennis’ claim that I didn’t take the photo is blatantly false,” Brody tells EW. “I took the photo in 1983. The photo was in my possession the entire time, for 26 years, until it was delivered to Vampire Weekend.” Brody declined further comment, citing his own attorneys’ advice.
[JULY 22 UPDATE: Neigher has since clarified that he was only speculating when he said that a member of Kennis' family snapped the shot. "We have no idea who took the picture," he now tells EW. Kennis maintains that she never met Brody and that her signature on the release form he gave Vampire Weekend was forged.]
Vampire Weekend has yet to comment on the case. (See update after the jump.) After hearing both stories, who do you think is in the right here? Weigh in below. READ FULL STORY »
A faintly smiling young woman wearing a yellow Ralph Lauren shirt became instantly famous earlier this year when a vintage photo of her appeared on the front cover of Vampire Weekend‘s chart-topping Contra album. Now someone has come forward as the heretofore anonymous model — and she’s hitting the indie rockers with a multi-million dollar lawsuit, claiming they used the image without her permission.
In papers filed yesterday in an L.A. court, Ann Kirsten Kennis says that the photo was taken around 1983, when she was working as “a high-fashion model under contract with prestigious agencies in New York City.” (Hat tip to TMZ for first reporting the suit today.) The lawsuit claims that the signature on the release form for the photo was forged. Kennis is asking the band, label XL Recordings, and photographer Tod Brody for at least $2 million for this alleged misappropriation of identity, arguing that “the album design, in which the Photograph is featured prominently, was a substantial factor in generating recognition and buzz for the Contra album, thus increasing sales and profits.”
A rep for the band tells EW they have no comment at this time. A phone call to Kennis’ attorney was not immediately returned. We’ll update you if and when we hear anything more. ‘Til then, what do you think of this story?
UPDATE: More details on the model who’s suing the band, plus the photographer’s response
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Rock them, Amadeus! Jaunty prep-school rockers Vampire Weekend, in full powdered-wig regalia, get britches-deep in modern L.A. living (pool parties! Venice Beach! iced lattes!) in their new video for the sunny single “Holiday”: READ FULL STORY »
Image Credit: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic.com In the end it was just a rumor. The whispers going around Indio, Calif.’s Empire Polo Club Friday held that Dr. Dre would debut the first single from his extremely delayed Detox during Jay-Z’s headlining set on the opening night of Coachella 2010. This sounded plausible enough: We know that this single exists, features Jay-Z, and is called “Under Pressure.” Even so, Dre didn’t show. In retrospect, perhaps we should have known the story was too good to be true.
But who’s complaining? Not me. What Jay-Z did give us was an absolutely stellar evening with an entertainer like no other. Nor did his performance lack surprises. There were fireworks. There was an unannounced cameo from Beyoncé. There were shout-outs to indie bands who had played earlier like “Passion Pit, Grizzly Bear, and Yeasayers.” (Yes, Jay-Z randomly pluralized Yeasayer, but let’s not hold that against him.) And of course there was an entire day full of said indie bands before Jay took the stage. Read all about it after the jump.
Image Credit: Mark SquiresA host of actors and musicians—including Drew Barrymore, Daft Punk, Mark Ronson, Natalie Portman, No Doubt, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Grizzly Bear, the Strokes, Cat Power and Aziz Ansari—have signed on to contribute DIY artwork, clothing, signed instruments and more to Craft for a Cause, an online auction to benefit Haiti.
The internet-only event, which began at 8am this morning and continues through March 27, is spearheaded by Binki Shapiro, of sunny Strokes side project Little Joy. Top items on the bid site as of now include a hand-drawn t-shirt designed by Norah Jones, a Fender Squire II Stratocaster electric guitar signed and painted by Conor Oberst, and a hot-pink baby piano autographed by the members of Maroon 5.
Higher-ticket stuff, such as an original song by Mark Ronson, including all studio and production fees (minimum bid $1,000) and a pair of “1000% Kubrick Robots” signed and decorated by Daft Punk ($1,900), are made for bigger bank accounts, though many bits come in at kinder budgets ($30 starting price for Kings of Leon cover-art silk screens or a signed Amy Poehler caricature).
Find out more on CfaC’s official tumbler, and go ahead and get yourself a Jenny Lewis tote-bag poem or a Neil Gaiman fun pack for a good cause and a nice tax write-off.
(Follow the Music Mix on Twitter: @EWMusicMix.)
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I’m just going to put this out there, and admittedly it is only my personal opinion: Playing tennis with Vampire Weekend looks about a zillion times more fun than going bowling with Justin Bieber. Take a gander at Vampire Weekend’s new “Giving Up the Gun” video below and you might see what I mean.
The clip centers on a tennis match in which a young woman faces off against, in turn, Joe Jonas; Jake Gyllenhaal, who swigs from a flask and rips off his pants; Lil Jon, who sports a Panama hat and speaks in subtitled French; and several other folks who are not famous. The match is judged by the Wu-Tang Clan’s RZA, who is dressed like a character from The Matrix and can apparently teleport. By the end of the revels, actual fireballs are being volleyed across the net.
This is about the craziest celebrity line-up I’ve seen in a music video since Jamie Foxx’s “Blame It” — which, as Pitchfork notes, also co-starred Jake Gyllenhaal. That guy picks his roles well. Watch “Giving Up the Gun” below and let us know what you think.
(Follow the Music Mix on Twitter: @EWMusicMix.)
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Justin Bieber goes bowling in his “Baby” video: Watch it
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With festival season heading into full swing, Sasquatch—the indie music madness that takes place at the Gorge in George, Washington over Memorial Day weekend each year—announced the line-up for its festivities this year. According to Spinner.com, MGMT, Vampire Weekend (at left), and My Morning Jacket are the biggest acts to join the line-up, which includes the previously announced headliner,Pavement. The acts were announced at a show held at the Crocodile Cafe in Seattle last night.
Also signed on: Broken Social Scene, the National, the Hold Steady, Band of Horses, the xx, Dirty Projectors, Passion Pit, Miike Snow, Ween, Public Enemy, Tegan & Sara, LCD Soundsystem, and Massive Attack.
Who’s missing, Music Mixers? Will you be gearing up for Sasquatch 2010? If you could choose one late-add (or several!), who would it be?
(Follow the Music Mix on Twitter: @EWMusicMix.)
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‘My Sharona’: the real Sharona remembers late Knack singer Doug Fieger
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Last week, indie band Vampire Weekend recorded a co-hosting appearance on Sirius Radio’s SIRIUS XMU channel (their latest album, Contra, recently landed atop the Billboard 200).
During a conversation that spanned several topics, host Jenny Eliscu asked the Vampire boys who their favorite secret music indulgence was, and keyboardist/guitairst Rostam Batmanglij offered up a rather surprising (for him!), answer: “Pretty much everything by Lady Gaga,” Batmanglij said. When Eliscu said she took issue with Gaga, claiming there’s “no there there,” Batmanglij defended the pop princess, explaining that she’s helping teenagers know that “they shouldn’t feel like a freak. That’s something I personally can relate to. And so I think it is meaningful. I think what she is doing is meaningful.” Well put, Rostam!
Listen to the full, Lady Gaga-infused segment below, and be sure to stick around for their rendition of “Bad Romance” at the end. Then tune in every day this week from 5 to 6pm to hear the show (SIRIUS channel 26 and XM channel 43).
Does this revelation make you love Vampire Weekend even more? Do you smell a freaky Vampire-Gaga collab coming on? I say: Bring it!
(Follow the Music Mix on Twitter: @EWMusicMix.)
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It’s a grand day for indie rock, as Vampire Weekend have just debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. Go ahead and hoist a refreshing glass of horchata in their honor. The preppy foursome sold 124,000 copies of their sophomore album Contra, according to Nielsen SoundScan — a nice number that, combined with weak retail competition, was enough to make them the biggest band in the nation for at least one week. Considering that the No. 1 spot generally belongs to major-label acts like Ke$ha and Susan Boyle, it’s impressive to see a scrappy young indie group pull this off. (Contra came out on XL Recordings.) In fact, this is only the 12th time an independent release has topped Billboard‘s flagship chart since the SoundScan era began in 1991.
Speaking of Susan Boyle, I Dreamed a Dream stayed at No. 2 by selling 77,000 copies. Barring any surprises, her lengthy reign on this chart would seem to have reached a definitive end. Meanwhile, last week’s chart-topper, Ke$ha, slipped to No. 3 with 67,000 copies sold of Animal in its second week.
Aside from Vampire Weekend, it was a quiet week for new releases. R&B crooner Omarion’s alliteratively titled Ollusion landed at No. 19, with 19,000 copies sold; no other new albums made the Top 20.
What do you think of Vampire Weekend’s chart triumph? How far do you think they’ll drop next week? Sound off in the comments, below.
(Follow the Music Mix on Twitter: @EWMusicMix.)
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New Taylor Swift song, “Today Was a Fairytale”: Listen here
