 The song surfaced online on October 16 , 2013 — two days prior to the official release of Prism . On April 3 , 2014 , the singer announced on her Twitter account that " Birthday " would be released as the album 's fourth single , posting its cover art as well . The art is based on a photograph , taken during a birthday party circa 1990 , in which a blonde Perry and her sister Angela Hudson smile toward the camera ; " puffy " letter balloons were " photoshopped " onto the cover to spell out Perry 's name . The song title appears in candles over a floral cake . To promote the single , a lyric video for " Birthday " was uploaded onto Perry 's Vevo account on April 10 , 2014 . It depicts a variety of cakes and sweets — among other confections — decorated with the song 's lyrics and concludes with Perry lighting the last candle of a cake . 
