‘Happy Birthday’ Song Declared Public Domain.
September 23, 2015
“Happy birthday to you / Happy birthday to you / Happy birthday dear reader / happy birthday to you!” Yup, we can totally do that now. A judge recently declared that the long-thought-valid Warner/Chappell copyright on the song is anything but. Congratulations to the employees of any mid-level casual dining restaurant, you’ve been freed from the shackles of elaborate cooperate penned birthday songs. Congratulations to film characters experiencing birthdays, you can finally do more than wordlessly blow out the candles on your cake. Congratulations—and happy birthday—to us all.
Laura Studarus
Laura Studarus is a staff writer at RELEVANT. She likes catsup and pie. Now there's nothing left to discuss on the second date. Follow her on Twitter @Laura_Studarus.