How the "Hanging Tree" Song Links The Hunger Games and "Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes"

Updated on 10/20/2023 at 12:05 PM

Watch out! This post contains spoilers.

This November, audiences are heading back to Panem with the release of "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes," the prequel to the original Hunger Games movie series. "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes," based on the novel of the same name, is set 64 years before the original films, which tell the story of Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence), a girl living in District 12 whose life is forever changed when she volunteers for the Games. "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" focuses on an earlier Hunger Games in a much younger Panem when a different District 12 resident, Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler), is chosen for the Games. One other thing that connects them: both women sing the song "The Hanging Tree."

If your Hunger Games lore is a little rusty, we can help. Lawrence's Katniss sang "The Hanging Tree" in full in the "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1," released in 2014. The song became something of a protest anthem across Panem, though it's deeply tied to Katniss's District 12 identity. Zegler sings a new version in this November's "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes," which arrived ahead of the film on Oct. 20.

Ahead, we break down just what the song is about, its significance in the world of The Hunger Games, and both women's renditions.

What Is "The Hanging Tree" in The Hunger Games About?

"The Hanging Tree" is a plea from one lover to another to come meet them at the titular tree. They ask their lover to meet them there at midnight so they can run away together. The narrator also tells the story of a man who was hung from the tree, giving the tree its moniker. "The dead man called out for his love to flee," they sing.

But Katniss eventually comes to realize in the books that the narrator of the song is actually the man who was killed, and he's calling for his love to come to him and die too. He wants her to make her own necklace of rope — her own noose — to join him.

What Is the Significance of "The Hanging Tree" in The Hunger Games?

In "Mockingjay — Part 1," Katniss is followed by a film crew who are making pro-rebellion propaganda. They film her singing the song, and it's quickly broadcast throughout the country and used as a rallying cry by rebels. But the original books give us more insight into the song's history and role in the narrative.

In the books, Katniss remembers that her dad (who has died by the time the books begin) would often sing "The Hanging Tree" and taught it to her and her sister, Prim (Willow Shields). When her mom found out, she was furious and banned the song. Peeta also remembers Katniss's dad singing the song, and it's a positive memory for him of their past.

Katniss ultimately reconsiders the song and realizes the narrator is just trying to protect his love. The song also appears to be banned in all of Panem because the real "lover" is not one person, but all would-be rebels, who ought to fight for freedom, even if it means death.

The book "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" reveals that Lucy wrote "The Hanging Tree." Spoilers: Lucy bases the lyrics on a real man in District 12 who's executed after being blamed for the deaths of three men. The song also alludes to the romantic connection between Lucy and Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth in the new film and Donald Sutherland in the original four). They agree to meet at the hanging tree to run away together.

Lucy is a member of a group called the Covey, nomads known for their musical talent. After the events of "The Balled of Songbirds and Snakes," the Covey are banned from performing ever again. Katniss's dad then only could have learned the song through a network of ancestors who passed it through the generations in secret.

Who Wrote "The Hanging Tree" From the Hunger Games?

Suzanne Collins and The Lumineers wrote the song for the Hunger Games films, though the in-universe author is Lucy Gray Baird.

"The Hanging Tree" Lyrics

Are you, are you
Coming to the tree
Where they strung up a man they say murdered three?
Strange things did happen here
No stranger would it be
If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree

Are you, are you
Coming to the tree
Where the dead man called out for his love to flee?
Strange things did happen here
No stranger would it be
If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree

Are you, are you
Coming to the tree
Where I told you to run, so we'd both be free?
Strange things did happen here
No stranger would it be
If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree

Are you, are you
Coming to the tree?
Wear a necklace of rope, side by side with me
Strange things did happen here
No stranger would it be
If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree