Jennifer Lawrence sings the ‘Hanging Tree’ song in the movie, after which it achieves fame as a rebel song that the rebels chant while attacking Capitol walls. It is composed by James Newton Howard, Jeremiah Fraites, and Wesley Schultz. The song’s lyrics are composed as an old Appalachian folk song and debuted at No. 12 on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Key Facts about ‘The Hanging Tree‘
- Songwriter: Suzanne Collins
- Composer: James Newton Howard, Jeremiah Fraites, Wesley Schultz
- Vocals: Jennifer Lawrence
- Record label: Republic Records
- Release date: December 9, 2014
- Genre: Folk ballad featuring choir and orchestral strings
Song 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.
‘The Hunger Games’
Origin of ‘The Hanging Tree’
Is the ‘Hanging Tree’ originally from ‘The Hunger Games’? Yes, the ‘Hanging Tree’ is originally from ‘The Hunger Games‘. It was written by Suzanne Collins in the book, ‘Mockingjay’, and composer James Newton Howard adapted it for the movies. The Lumineers (artists of ‘Ho Hey’ and artists of the Catching Fire soundtrack) also worked on giving a melody to the poem.
‘The Hanging Tree’ is a folk ballad written by Lucy Gray Baird in ‘The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.’ The song’s origin story consists of a darker history, and the creepy lyrics are forever banned from the Everdeen house after 7-year-old Katniss is caught singing the song without understanding the song’s meaning or the metaphor of the desperate lover.
Stanza One
Towards the end of the prequel, Lucy Gray and Coriolanus Snow witness the hanging of Arlo Chance, who was sentenced to death for causing an accident in the mines that led to the death of three people.
This is the murder that is referred to in the first verse of the song. The first verse, night could also be a reference to Coriolanus Snow, who was responsible for the death of three people: Bobbin, Mayfair Lipp, and his friend, Sejanus Plinth. District 12 did not have a setup for the gallows at the time. As such, all hangings took place from a particular tree near the woods. This tree came to be known as the ‘Hanging Tree’ and is featured in the title of the song.
Stanza Two
During the hanging of Arlo Chance, his lover, Lil, was also present. Before being hanged, Arlo shouts at Lil to run. The jabberjays in the woods pick up the cry to run and continue to shout the word out long after Arlo is dead. This is how a “dead man” was able to call out to his love to flee in the second verse.
Stanza Three
The third verse reiterates how Arlo Chance desperately wished for himself and his love to be free of the Capitol’s autocratic regime. However, the verse is ironic because the only way Arlo would be free is if he were dead. Thus, the line, “so we’d both be free,” carries a cynical and sardonic plea, as Lil herself would not consider herself “free” even if she ran away. Not only would she have to live in constant fear, but she would also have to live a miserable life without her love.
Stanza Four
The last stanza seems to be a direct supplication to Coriolanus Snow, the man for whom the song was written. Lucy Gray and Coriolanus plan to escape together to the north by meeting up at the ‘Hanging Tree’ and escaping through the woods.
Thus, the refrain of the song, “Are you, are you, coming to the tree,” depicts doubt and tension as Lucy Gray is unsure of whether he would stick to his word or not. Further, running away carries a huge risk, as they would most certainly receive a death sentence if caught. Thus, Lucy Gray likens the act of running away to being hanged by a “necklace of rope”.
At the beginning, it sounds like a guy is trying to get his girlfriend to secretly meet up with him at midnight. But it’s an odd place for a tryst, a hanging tree, where a man was hung for murder. The murderer’s lover must have had something to do with the killing, or maybe they were just going to punish her anyway, because his corpse called out for her to flee.
That’s weird obviously, the talking-corpse bit, but it’s not until the third verse that “The Hanging Tree” begins to get unnerving. You realize the singer of the song is the dead murderer. He’s still in the hanging tree. And even though he told his lover to flee, he keeps asking if she’s coming to meet him.
The phrase, “Where I told you to run, so we’d both be free” is the most troubling because at first you think he’s talking about when he told her to flee, presumably to safety. But then you wonder if he meant for her to run to him. To death. In the final stanza, it’s clear that that’s what he’s waiting for. His lover, with her rope necklace, hanging dead next to him in the tree.
Katniss Everdeen in ‘The Hunger Games’
Coriolanus Snow interprets the song as having been written from the point of view of Billy Taupe Clade, an ex-boyfriend of Lucy Gray. The ‘Hanging Tree’ was an old rendezvous spot for Billy Taupe and Lucy Gray, and the first two verses of the song refer to Arlo Chance’s hanging, while the second two verses refer to the altercation at the Hob that resulted in Billy Taupe’s death. At the Hob, Billy Taupe had asked Lucy Gray to run away from District 12 with him, and when she refused, he wished for the two of them to die together.
‘The Hanging Tree’ in ‘The Hunger Games’ Trilogy
Katniss Everdeen is taught the ‘Hanging Tree’ by her father, who loves music and singing. Peeta Mellark mentions how all the birds around Mr. Everdeen stopped singing and fell silent when he opened his mouth to sing.
After Mr. Everdeen teaches his kids the song, Katniss and her sister, Primrose, sing the song while crafting necklaces out of scraps of old rope not fully understanding the connotations behind rope necklaces. Mrs. Everdeen catches them in the act and is horrified at how casually they are singing the song. She yells at Mr. Everdeen and Mr. Everdeen forbids his daughters from singing the song again.
Distressed by this conflict, Katniss runs into the meadow and begins to have a mental meltdown. Her father then tells her to completely forget the song altogether. However, the lyrics of the song become so deeply ingrained into Katniss’ mind that she is unable to forget a single word. After her father’s death, the song plays itself in her mind over and over again.
Katniss sings the song for the first time after this incident in District 12 during the Second Rebellion. The tongue-less Avox Pollux asks her to sing, and she complies by singing the really beautiful song about a dead murderer, the ‘Hanging Tree.’ The songbirds around her stop to listen to her sing, just like they did for her father. The singing abilities of the mockingjays amplify the haunting melody, much like they did with Rue’s four-note birdcall.
Katniss’ sweet voice is recorded in a propo by the film crew and broadcast to the rest of the districts. The song turns into an anthem for the rebels. It continued to be used as a warcry till the end of the rebellion. This is ironic as the song was first written for the evil Coriolanus Snow and later ended up being used against him as the song of revolutions.
What is the meaning of the ‘Hanging Tree’ in ‘The Hunger Games’? The real meaning of the words of the ‘Hanging Tree’ is about a man named Arlo Chance, who was hanged from a tree in District 12 for the accidental murder of three people in an explosion in the coal mines.
The song is likely inspired by the song ‘Strange Fruit’ by Billie Holiday, which is a rebel song (“Southern trees bear strange fruit / Blood on the leaves and blood at the root / Black body swinging in the southern breeze / Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees.”). Derived from Lawrence Beitler’s 1930 photograph depicting the lynching of two black men in Indiana, ‘Strange Fruit’ originated as a poem composed in 1938 by Abel Meeropol, a Jewish union activist and a schoolteacher.
‘The Hanging Tree’ in the Movies
Frances Lawrence, the director of ‘The Hunger Games’ movies, asked James Newton Howard to compose the song in a manner that would not be overly complicated for the movies. He also wanted this song to be suitable for being sung by an individual as well as a large group. Howard, Wesley Schultz, and Jeremiah Fraites composed the song like a children’s nursery rhyme with dark undertones. The song borrows heavily from Appalachian music, which is popular for murder ballads.
Who sings the ‘Hanging Tree’ song in the movie? Jennifer Lawrence sings the ‘Hanging Tree’ song in the Hunger Games movies. Jen works with a vocal coach to sing the revolutionary song and has a slight crack in her voice. The song voices the first connection of an old life witnessed by members of District 12 and later undergoes a swift quashing in the Everdeen household. The mournful song soundtracks the rebel efforts of District 12, and the whole thing is turned into a civil rights movement anthem and is chanted by rebels in the final battle.
Due to her fear of singing in public, Jennifer asked for the New Zealand singer Lorde to sing the song. The director declined her request and gave her vocal lessons. Thus, Jennifer Lawrence herself sings the song in the movie, although Jennifer is in tears after the first take. This version of the song became hugely popular, after which it was added to the film’s soundtrack and released as the second single.
The song was certified platinum by Music Canada, as well as double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. It went on to become immensely popular in the United States, Austria, Hungary, and Australia, and Jennifer Lawrence became 1 of 13 Academy Award recipients to chart on the US Billboard Hot 100.
What movie is the ‘Hanging Tree’ song in? The ‘Hanging Tree’ is a song that features in ‘Mockingjay Part 1’. The vocals are provided by actress Jennifer Lawrence. Collins’s lyrics about the creepiest guy ever become some of the rebel tunes, and the haunting melody is brought to life by Director Francis Lawrence.
