Attention, old poets and smiths of the word,
The good times are coming, or haven't you heard?
Perhaps your allotment of talent's been spent.
Old royalty checks will not cover the rent.
And maybe you're back making tips at burlesque,
Or punching the keys at some corporate desk.
Your vision's not blinded, so wipe off those tears -
Your fans will return in just 95 years!
Public Domain, the Public Domain
Where all of our work will be free to obtain.
Your time to be famous will come once again,
When you're introduced to the Public Domain!
Your wit's out of fashion. Your genre is dead,
And nothing of value remains in your head.
But all that's discarded will someday be found,
and old-fashioned styles will again come around.
They'll honor your brilliance and self-sacrifice
While loading your work onto every device!
Public Domain, the Public Domain
Where you'd get a bonus for dying insane.
And though you're mislabelled, you cannot complain -
At least you'll be read in the Public Domain.
While you remain comfortably snug in your grave,
The government reckons what's worthy to save.
When kids of the kids of our kids start to say,
"There's something the matter with kids of today!"
That's when they will open the floodgates of art.
So rest easy, friend, you've completed your part!
Public Domain, the Public Domain
We'll thaw out the freezer of Walt Disney's brain,
And open a bottle of fancy champagne
For we'll join him soon in the Public Domain!