who made the song happy birthday to you
Happy Birthday to You "Happy Birthday to You", more commonly known as simply "Happy Birthday", is a song that is traditionally sung to celebrate the anniversary of a person's birth. According to the 1998 Guinness World Records, "Happy Birthday to You" is the most recognized song in the English language, followed by "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow". The song's base lyrics have been translated into at least 18 languages.[1] The melody of "Happy Birthday to You" comes from the song "Good Morning to All",[2] which has traditionally been attributed to American sisters Patty and Mildred J. Hill in 1893,[3][4] although the claim that the sisters composed the tune is disputed.[5]
Happy Birthday to You Prior to the lawsuit, Warner/Chappell had been earning $2 million a year licensing the song for commercial use,[45] with a notable example the $5,000 paid by the filmmakers of the 1994 documentary, Hoop Dreams,[48] in order to safely distribute the film.[49] On February 8, 2016, Warner/Chappell agreed to pay a settlement of $14 million to those who had licensed the song, and would allow a final judgment declaring the song to be in the public domain, with a final hearing scheduled in March 2016.[50][51] On June 28, 2016, the final settlement was officially granted and the court declared that the song was in the public domain.[19] The following week, Nelson's short-form documentary, Happy Birthday: my campaign to liberate the people's song, was published online by The Guardian.[52]