Rodney Woodland v. Montero Hill

BACKGROUND

Rodney Woodland describes himself as a visual artist, photographer, figure model, and online content creator. He posts many original photographs of himself semi-naked—or more precisely, naked with his groin area strategically covered or obscured—in various poses and backgrounds on Instagram. The photos at issue were posted on his Instagram account between August 2018 and July 2021. Each of Woodland’s twelve posts garnered between eight and seventy-five “likes.” Montero Lamar Hill, otherwise known as Lil Nas X, is a well-known recording artist who actively uses Instagram to promote his music and tour dates. He, too, posts photographs of himself semi-naked in a wide array of poses and backgrounds. Between March and October 2021, Hill posted eight photographs on Instagram that Woodland claims infringed on twelve of his copyrighted photographs. Hill’s posts on Instagram receive hundreds of thousands, and sometimes millions, of “likes.” In June 2022, Woodland sued Hill for copyright infringement, declaratory relief, accounting, and unjust enrichment. After Woodland filed his amended complaint,

WOODLAND V. HILL

the district court dismissed…