Fact Bomb of the Day FBOTD: Happy Birthday song
Many assume the classic 'Happy Birthday' song is free for anyone to use, but it was under copyright protection for decades until 2016, when a court ruled it belonged in the public domain and could finally be sung publicly without paying hefty licensing fees.
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- Because the song was copyrighted for so long, movies used to feature obscure or fake birthday songs instead to avoid paying thousands of dollars in licensing fees to the copyright holders.
- Many people incorrectly believe that the song's lyrics were written by the Hill sisters at the same time as the melody, but the famous birthday words were actually added by anonymous people nearly two decades after the original Good Morning to All song was created.
- Because the melody is so simple and uses just one octave of notes, it is one of the most frequently performed songs in history, with millions of people singing it every single day across the globe.
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