Who owns 'Happy Birthday'?

The song "Happy Birthday" is known worldwide – but the story behind its rights is only familiar to a few. The melody originated from a children's song created in 1883 by the American sisters Mildred and Patty Hill. Mildred composed the tune, while Patty wrote the lyrics. Originally, however, the song wasn’t a birthday song, but a greeting song called "Good Morning to All."

It later turned out that songs with similar lyrics already existed, including “Happy Greetings to All” and “A Happy New Year to You All.” However, the kids at the Hill sisters’ kindergarten especially liked their version. On birthdays, they would spontaneously change the lyrics to “Happy Birthday to You.” Years later, a music publisher had this version copyrighted. Anyone who wanted to perform the song publicly – for example on TV, radio, in movies, or at larger events – had to pay licensing fees.

In 2015, a court decided that the famous song lyrics didn't belong to the music publisher, but actually came from the children at a kindergarten, while the melody was by Mildred Hill. The copyright was then lifted. Today, 'Happy Birthday' exists in 18 different languages.