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"Let It Go" is a song from
Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
's 2013 computer-animated feature film '' Frozen'', whose music and lyrics were composed by husband-and-wife songwriting team Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez. The song was performed in its original show-tune version in the film by American actress and singer
Idina Menzel Idina Kim Menzel ( ; ; born May 30, 1971) is an American actress and singer. Particularly known for her work in musicals on the Broadway stage and having achieved mainstream success across stage, film and music, Menzel has garnered the honori ...
in her vocal role as Queen Elsa. It was later released as a single, being promoted to
adult contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...
radio by
Walt Disney Records Walt Disney Records is an American record label of the Disney Music Group. The label releases soundtrack albums from The Walt Disney Company's motion picture studios, television series, theme parks, and traditional studio albums produced by its ...
in January 2014. Anderson-Lopez and Lopez also composed a simplified pop version (with shorter lyrics and background chorus) which was performed by actress and singer
Demi Lovato Demetria Devonne Lovato ( ; born August 20, 1992), known as Demi Lovato, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. After appearing on the children's television series '' Barney & Friends'' (2002–2004), Lovato rose to prominence for p ...
over the start of the film's
closing credits Closing credits or end credits are a list of the cast and crew of a particular motion picture, television program, or video game. Where opening credits appear at the beginning of a work, closing credits appear close to, or at the very end of a ...
. Disney's music division planned to release Lovato's version of the song before Menzel's, as they did not consider Menzel's version a traditional pop song. A music video was released separately for Lovato's version. The song was a commercial success, becoming the first song from a Disney animated musical to reach the top ten of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 since 1995, when Vanessa L. Williams's "
Colors of the Wind "Colors of the Wind" is a song written by composer Alan Menken and lyricist Stephen Schwartz for Walt Disney Pictures' 33rd animated feature film, '' Pocahontas'' (1995). The film's theme song, "Colors of the Wind" was originally recorded by A ...
" from ''
Pocahontas Pocahontas (, ; born Amonute, known as Matoaka, 1596 – March 1617) was a Native American woman, belonging to the Powhatan people, notable for her association with the colonial settlement at Jamestown, Virginia. She was the daughter of ...
'' peaked at number four on the chart. The song is also Menzel's first single to reach the top 10 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, making her the first
Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...
winner for acting to ever reach the top 10. The song was the ninth-best-selling song of 2014 in the United States, with 3.37 million copies sold in that year. , the song had sold 3.5 million copies in the US. It was the biggest-selling foreign song from any original soundtrack in South Korea . The song presents Queen Elsa, who flees her kingdom when she publicly loses control of her ability to generate ice. Up in the mountains and away from the townspeople, Elsa realizes that she no longer needs to hide her ability and rejoices in not only being able to use her power freely but also the freedom from others' expectations of her as a royal. She sheds her royal accessories, creates a living snowman, and builds an ice castle for herself. "Let It Go" reached the top five on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, and won both the
Academy Award for Best Original Song The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is presented to the ''songwriters'' who have composed ...
in
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and the
Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media The Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media (including its previous names) is the Grammy Awards awarded to songs written for films, television, video games or other visual media. Recipients * Each year is linked t ...
in 2015. The song gained international recognition, becoming one of the most globally-recorded Disney songs, with versions sung in 25 different languages for the film's international releases. According to the
International Federation of the Phonographic Industry The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a non-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland and founded in Italy in 1 ...
, "Let It Go" sold 10.9 million copies in 2014, becoming the year's fifth best-selling song. A
remix A remix (or reorchestration) is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, video, poem, or photograph can all be remixes. The o ...
EP was released digitally by
Walt Disney Records Walt Disney Records is an American record label of the Disney Music Group. The label releases soundtrack albums from The Walt Disney Company's motion picture studios, television series, theme parks, and traditional studio albums produced by its ...
on May 19, 2014. The EP features four remixes by
Dave Audé Dave Audé (born Oct 12, 1969) is an American DJ, producer and remixer. He operates his own label Audacious Records, and is known for having more number ones than any other producer on the ''Billboard'' Dance Club Songs chart. He has done prod ...
, Papercha$er, DJ Escape & Tony Coluccio and Corbin Hayes.
Armin van Buuren Armin Jozef Jacobus Daniël van Buuren ( , ; born 25 December 1976) is a Dutch DJ and record producer from Leiden, South Holland. Since 2001, he has hosted '' A State of Trance'' (ASOT), a weekly radio show, which is broadcast to nearly 40&n ...
produced another remix of the song for the
remix album A remix album is an album consisting of remixes or rerecorded versions of an artist's earlier released material. The first act who employed the format was American singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson ('' Aerial Pandemonium Ballet'', 1971). As of 200 ...
, '' Dconstructed''.


History and use in ''Frozen''


Background and composition

''
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'' explained that instead of the villain originally envisioned by the producers, the songwriters saw Elsa as "a scared girl struggling to control and come to terms with her gift." When interviewed in January 2014 by John August and
Aline Brosh McKenna Aline Brosh McKenna (born August 2, 1967) is an American screenwriter, producer and director. Her credits include writing '' The Devil Wears Prada'' (2006), ''27 Dresses'' (2008), ''Morning Glory'' (2010), ''We Bought a Zoo'' (2011) and co-cre ...
, ''Frozen'' director Jennifer Lee gave her recollection of the song's conception: "Bobby and Kristen said they were walking in Prospect Park and they just started talking about what would it feel like o be Elsa Forget villain. Just what it would feel like. And this concept of letting out who she is that she's kept to herself for so long and she's alone and free, but then the sadness of the fact 'sic''that the last moment is she's alone. It's not a perfect thing, but it's powerful." "Let It Go" was the first song written by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez for the film that made it in, since songs composed earlier were eventually cut. The story outline they were given had a place reserved for "Elsa's Badass Song", which was what they were trying to write. The duo took inspiration from the songs of the
Disney Renaissance The Disney Renaissance was the period from 1989 to 1999 during which Walt Disney Feature Animation returned to producing critically and commercially successful animated films that were mostly musical adaptations of well-known stories, much ...
such as '' The Little Mermaid'' and ''
Beauty and the Beast ''Beauty and the Beast'' (french: La Belle et la Bête) is a fairy tale written by French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in ''La Jeune Américaine et les contes marins'' (''The Young American and Marine ...
'' and various artists including
Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (, ; born 5 May 1988), professionally known by the mononym Adele, is an English singer and songwriter. After graduating in arts from the BRIT School in 2006, Adele signed a rec ...
,
Aimee Mann Aimee Elizabeth Mann (born September 8, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter. Over the course of four decades, she has released more than a dozen albums as a solo artist and with other musicians. She is noted for her sardonic and literate lyr ...
,
Avril Lavigne Avril Ramona Lavigne ( ; born September 27, 1984) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. At age 16, she signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records. Her debut studio album, '' Let Go'' (2002), is the best-selling album of the 2 ...
(whose 2002 debut album was titled '' Let Go''),
Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...
, and
Carole King Carole King Klein (born Carol Joan Klein; February 9, 1942) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who has been active since 1958, initially as one of the staff songwriters at 1650 Broadway and later as a solo artist. Regarded as one ...
. The song finally began to gel one day as the couple walked together from their home in
Park Slope Park Slope is a neighborhood in northwestern Brooklyn, New York City, within the area once known as South Brooklyn. Park Slope is roughly bounded by Prospect Park and Prospect Park West to the east, Fourth Avenue to the west, Flatbush A ...
to nearby Prospect Park while they were "thinking from an
emo Emo is a rock music genre characterized by emotional, often confessional lyrics. It emerged as a style of and hardcore punk from the Washington D.C. hardcore punk scene, where it was known as emotional hardcore or emocore and pioneered b ...
kind of place."Melena Ryzik
"The Nominees Are Blockbusters: Oscar-Nominated Songs With Familiar Composers"
, ''
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'', February 20, 2014, C1.
Anderson-Lopez explained what happened next: "We went for a walk in Prospect Park and threw phrases at each other. What does it feel like to be the perfect exalted person, but only because you've held back this secret? Bobby came up with 'kingdom of isolation,' and it worked." Lopez was able to improvise the song's first four lines on the spot. Back at their home studio, they composed the rest of the song by alternating between improvising melodies on a piano and brainstorming lyrics on a whiteboard, and finished it within a single day. "Let It Go" is a
power ballad A sentimental ballad is an emotional style of music that often deals with romantic and intimate relationships, and to a lesser extent, loneliness, death, war, drug abuse, politics and religion, usually in a poignant but solemn manner.J. ...
in the key of
A-flat major A-flat major (or the key of A-flat) is a major scale based on A, with the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Its key signature has four flats. The A-flat major scale is: : Its relative minor is F minor. Its parallel minor, A-flat m ...
overall, but begins in the relative minor (
F minor F minor is a minor scale based on F, consisting of the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature consists of four flats. Its relative major is A-flat major and its parallel major is F major. Its enharmonic equivalent, E-sharp mi ...
). The song is in quadruple meter, and has a fast tempo of around 137 beats per minute (''
allegro Allegro may refer to: Common meanings * Allegro (music), a tempo marking indicate to play fast, quickly and bright * Allegro (ballet), brisk and lively movement Artistic works * L'Allegro (1645), a poem by John Milton * ''Allegro'' (Satie), an ...
''). The song's vocal range spans from F3 to E5. Anderson-Lopez and Lopez specifically wrote the song for
Idina Menzel Idina Kim Menzel ( ; ; born May 30, 1971) is an American actress and singer. Particularly known for her work in musicals on the Broadway stage and having achieved mainstream success across stage, film and music, Menzel has garnered the honori ...
, referring to her as "one of the most glorious voices of
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
and an icon in musical theater." Menzel's
vocal range Vocal range is the range of pitches that a human voice can phonate. A common application is within the context of singing, where it is used as a defining characteristic for classifying singing voices into voice types. It is also a topic of st ...
was taken under consideration during the music's composition, as she was well able to span three octaves. The song was originally written a half-step lower, in the key of G. During recording, Menzel felt it sounded "womanly" and "sultry" and suggested to raise the key to make it more "innocent and juvenile", which also made it more challenging to perform.


Recording

For each song they created, including "Let It Go", Anderson-Lopez and Lopez recorded a demo in their studio, then emailed it to the Disney Animation production team in Burbank for discussion at their next videoconference. After the film's release, Anderson-Lopez was shown an "explicitly honest" fan version of the song with very colorful lyrics, and in response, she noted that in the videoconferences she herself had used similarly candid language to describe Elsa's mindset at that point in the plot: "After a while, Chris Montan, the head of music at Disney, would be like, 'Whoa, language!'" She also disclosed that Disney Animation's Chief Creative Officer
John Lasseter John Alan Lasseter (; born January 12, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, animator, voice actor, and the head of animation at Skydance Animation. He was previously the chief creative officer of Pixar Animation Studios ...
(who served as
executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights ...
for ''Frozen'') was so taken with "Let It Go" that he played her original demo of the song in his car for months. Once approved, the song's piano-vocal score, along with the rest of their work for ''Frozen'', was eventually forwarded to arranger
David Metzger David "Dave" Metzger (born December 12, 1960) is an American orchestrator and composer who has orchestrated many Disney feature animation films, including '' Frozen'', '' Moana'', ''Planes'', ''Wreck-It Ralph'', ''Tarzan'', ''Haunted Mansion'', an ...
at his home studio in
Salem, Oregon Salem ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary bet ...
, who orchestrated their work into a lush sound suitable for recording by a full
orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...
at the Eastwood Scoring Stage on the Warner Bros. studio lot in Burbank at the end of July 2013. The song's vocal track was recorded separately prior to orchestration at Sunset Sound in
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...
, with the piano track from the demo playing into Menzel's headphones. That piano track, played by Lopez himself, was not re-recorded by a
session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...
at the orchestral recording session; it is the same piano track heard in the final mix of the song.


Character rewrite and film sequence

Although unintentional, the song's composition was pivotal in the film's characterization of Elsa. Although Elsa was originally written as a villain, co-directors
Chris Buck Christopher James Buck (born February 24, 1958) is an American film director, animator, and screenwriter known for co-directing '' Tarzan'' (1999), '' Surf's Up'' (2007) (which was nominated for the 2007 Oscar for Best Animated Feature), '' F ...
and Lee gradually rewrote Elsa into one of the film's protagonists after "Let It Go" was composed. About that, Lee later explained, "the minute we heard the song the first time, I knew that I had to rewrite the whole movie." Buck further clarified: "Jen had to go back and rewrite some pages in the first act to build up to that scene..... You have to set it up well enough in advance so that when the song comes, the audience is ready for it and there's an emotional payoff." When it came to animating Elsa's scenes for the song, Lopez and Anderson-Lopez insisted on the particular detail that Elsa should slam the palace doors on the audience at the song's end, which they acknowledged was similar to the ending of the Broadway musical '' Sweeney Todd''. Lopez explained that they wanted that feeling of how "this character doesn't need us anymore," because he had always loved that feeling "when a character just kind of malevolently looks at you and slams a door in your face," although in the final version, Elsa's facial expression ended up as more of a "sly smile". According to Lopez, it was the last line at the end, "the cold never bothered me anyway," that was "our little
Avril Lavigne Avril Ramona Lavigne ( ; born September 27, 1984) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. At age 16, she signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records. Her debut studio album, '' Let Go'' (2002), is the best-selling album of the 2 ...
line". On December 6, 2013,
Walt Disney Animation Studios Walt Disney Animation Studios (WDAS), sometimes shortened to Disney Animation, is an American animation studio that creates animated features and short films for The Walt Disney Company. The studio's current production logo features a scene fr ...
released a video of the entire "Let It Go" sequence as seen in the movie, which has over 700 million views on
YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...
. On January 30, 2014, a sing-along version of the sequence was released and has received more than 2.6 billion views on YouTube , and more than 2.7 billion views as of 18 January 2022, and is one of the site's 40 most-viewed videos.


International versions

Besides the original English version,
Disney Character Voices International Disney Character Voices International, Inc. is a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company with primary responsibility for the provision of translation and dubbing services for all Disney productions including those by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pi ...
arranged for ''Frozen'' to be dubbed into another 41 languages and dialects worldwide, to which 3 more versions were added in the following years, raising the number of official versions to 44. A major challenge was to find
soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261  Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880& ...
s capable of matching Menzel's warm vocal tone and vocal range in their native languages. Rick Dempsey, senior executive at
Disney Character Voices International Disney Character Voices International, Inc. is a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company with primary responsibility for the provision of translation and dubbing services for all Disney productions including those by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pi ...
regarded the process as "exceptionally challenging", explaining, "It's a difficult juggling act to get the right intent of the lyrics and also have it match rhythmically to the music. And then you have to go back and adjust for lip sync! t.. requires a lot of patience and precision". On January 22, 2014, Disney released a multi-language version of the "Let It Go" musical sequence, which featured vocal performances of 25 different voice actresses who portrayed Elsa in their respective dubbing versions of the film. At the annual meeting of the shareholders of
the Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on Octobe ...
on March 18, 2014, in
Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous ...
, chairman and chief executive officer
Bob Iger Robert Allen Iger (; born February 10, 1951) is an American businessman who is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of The Walt Disney Company. He previously served as the President of ABC Television between 1994 and 1995 and the President and C ...
praised the team who did "an incredible job casting fantastic international talent so that ''Frozen'' truly belongs to the world," then showed the entire multi-language video clip of "Let It Go" to the assembled shareholders. On March 31, 2014, an in-studio multi-language video of the song was released, showing singers of 25 different languages recording their versions of "Let It Go". On April 15, 2014,
Walt Disney Records Walt Disney Records is an American record label of the Disney Music Group. The label releases soundtrack albums from The Walt Disney Company's motion picture studios, television series, theme parks, and traditional studio albums produced by its ...
released a
compilation album A compilation album comprises tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several performers. If by one artist, then generally the tracks were not originally intended for rel ...
titled ''Let It Go: The Complete Set'', with all 42 foreign-language film versions of "Let It Go" and nine end credit versions. The
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...
version, along with the whole Italian adaptation of the movie, was awarded best foreign dubbing worldwide. In
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
, the Korean version of the song by reached number 80 on the
Gaon Music Chart The Circle Chart (), previously known as the Gaon Music Chart or the Gaon Chart (), tabulates the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in South Korea. It is produced by the Korea Music Content Association and sponsored by South Korea's ...
in March, while the Japanese versions of the song performed by
Takako Matsu (born June 10, 1977) also known as is a Japanese actress and pop singer. Personal life Matsu was born to a family of buyō and kabuki actors, including her father Matsumoto Hakuō II, her mother and businesswoman Noriko Fujima, her uncle, ...
reached number 2 on the
Japan Hot 100 The ''Billboard Japan'' Hot 100 is a record chart in Japan for songs. It has been compiled by ''Billboard Japan'' and '' Hanshin Contents Link'' since February 2008. The chart is updated every Wednesday at Billboard-japan.com ( JST) and every Thur ...
after the film's Japanese release in March 2014 and was certified million for digital downloads in Japan in May 2014.


Reception


Critical reception

"Let It Go" received widespread acclaim from film critics, music critics, and audiences, with some comparing it favorably to " Defying Gravity" (also performed by Menzel) from the Broadway musical '' Wicked''. '' The Rochester City Newspaper'' called it the best song of the film's soundtrack, writing; "Performed with belty gusto by Idina Menzel, it's got every element needed to be a lasting favorite. ... Menzel should be credited for providing as much power and passion to this performance as she did in her most famous role." ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular ...
s Marc Snetiker described the song as "an incredible anthem of liberation" while Joe Dziemianowicz of ''
New York Daily News The New York ''Daily News'', officially titled the ''Daily News'', is an American newspaper based in Jersey City, NJ. It was founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson as the ''Illustrated Daily News''. It was the first U.S. daily printed in ...
'' called it "a stirring tribute to girl power and the need to 'let go' of fear and shame". On the other hand,
Jim DeRogatis James Peter DeRogatis (born September 2, 1964) is an American music critic and co-host of '' Sound Opinions''. DeRogatis has written articles for magazines such as '' Rolling Stone'', ''Spin'', '' Guitar World'' and '' Modern Drummer'', and for ...
and
Greg Kot Greg Kot (born March 3, 1957) is an American music journalist and author. From 1990 until 2020, Kot was the rock music critic at the '' Chicago Tribune'', where he covered popular music and reported on music-related social, political and busine ...
of the radio show Sound Opinions criticized the song; DeRogatis labeled it "schlock", and Kot described it as a "clichéd piece of fluff that you would have heard on a Broadway soundtrack from maybe the fifties or the sixties". By spring 2014, many journalists had observed that after watching ''Frozen'', numerous young children in the United States were becoming unusually obsessed with the film's music, and with "Let It Go" in particular. Columnist Yvonne Abraham of ''
The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' called the song "musical crack" which "sends kids into
altered states ''Altered States'' is a 1980 American science fiction body horror film directed by Ken Russell and based on the novel of the same name by playwright and screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky. The film was adapted from Chayefsky's 1978 novel and is his fi ...
." A similar phenomenon was described in the United Kingdom.


Perceived parallels

Some viewers outside the film industry, including one
evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...
pastor and commentators, believe that the film is a promotion for the normalization of
homosexuality Homosexuality is Romance (love), romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or Human sexual activity, sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romant ...
, while others have argued that the character of Elsa is a representation of positive
LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term ...
youth and the song is a metaphor for
coming out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBT people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. Framed and debated as a privacy issue, coming out of ...
. The LGBT community, however, had a mixed reaction to these claims. When ''Frozen'' co-director Jennifer Lee was asked about the purported gay undertones, she stated that the film's meaning was open to interpretation: "I feel like once we hand the film over, it belongs to the world, so I don't like to say anything, and let the fans talk. I think it's up to them." Lee added that the film's meaning was also inevitably going to be interpreted within the cultural context of being made in the year 2013. Another interpretation for the song and the movie is that they promote self-affirmation for people with disabilities, especially those on the
autism spectrum The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...
. Co-writer Kristen Andersen-Lopez has stated that her younger brother has autistic traits and that inspired the song insofar as it deals with the concept of having a "special sibling." In November 2017, Chilean pop singer Jaime Ciero sued Disney, Idina Menzel, and Demi Lovato, claiming that "Let It Go" was extremely similar to his 2008 song "Volar". Ciero dropped the suit in May 2019.


Accolades

"Let It Go" won the
Academy Award for Best Original Song The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is presented to the ''songwriters'' who have composed ...
at the
86th Academy Awards The 86th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2013 and took place on March 2, 2014, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m. ...
, where a shortened rendition of the show-tune version was performed live by Menzel; with the award, Robert Lopez became one of few people to have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony.


Track listing


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Decade-end charts


Certifications


Demi Lovato version

The decision to release a single for "Let It Go" was made after the song was written and was presented to Disney. Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez selected American singer and former
Disney Channel Disney Channel, sometimes known as simply Disney, is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Comp ...
star
Demi Lovato Demetria Devonne Lovato ( ; born August 20, 1992), known as Demi Lovato, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. After appearing on the children's television series '' Barney & Friends'' (2002–2004), Lovato rose to prominence for p ...
, who also appears on Disney's
Hollywood Records Hollywood Records is an American record label of the Disney Music Group. The label focuses in pop, rock, alternative, hip hop, and country genres, as well as specializing in mature recordings not suitable for the flagship Walt Disney Records ...
roster, to cover the song on the soundtrack album. It was included in the deluxe edition of ''
Demi Demi is a feminine given name with Greek and Latin roots. It was originally a nickname of Demetria, the feminine form of the masculine name Demetrius, which is itself the Latin and English spelling of the Greek name Demetrios. It is also an Alb ...
''.


International versions

Lovato's version was officially released in nine other languages, eight of which are included into "Let It Go the Complete Set": French, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Kazakh, Korean, Malay, Mandarin Chinese (China's version), Spanish (Latin American version) and Russian. The Indonesian pop version was released as leading single of We Love Disney, Indonesia. Anaïs Delva and
Marsha Milan Marsha Milan Londoh (born December 6, 1985) is a Malaysian singer and actress. She gained fame for being a contestant in the third season of the Malaysian reality show contest ''Akademi Fantasia'', in which she won the fourth place. In 2013, Ma ...
, who performed the song in
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
and Malay respectively, also voiced Elsa in the movie, performing the same song in its movie version. In South Korea, the pop version of the song by Hyolyn reached number six on the
Gaon Music Chart The Circle Chart (), previously known as the Gaon Music Chart or the Gaon Chart (), tabulates the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in South Korea. It is produced by the Korea Music Content Association and sponsored by South Korea's ...
in February, while the Japanese versions of the song, performed by
May J. , better known by her stage name May J., is a Japanese pop music, pop and Contemporary R&B, R&B singer who made her major label debut under Sony Music Japan on July 12, 2006, with her first mini-album ''All My Girls''. She was born to an Iranian m ...
, reached number 8 on the
Japan Hot 100 The ''Billboard Japan'' Hot 100 is a record chart in Japan for songs. It has been compiled by ''Billboard Japan'' and '' Hanshin Contents Link'' since February 2008. The chart is updated every Wednesday at Billboard-japan.com ( JST) and every Thur ...
after the film's Japanese release in March 2014 and was certified platinum for 250,000 downloads. May J. recorded a rearranged version of the song on her album ''Heartful Song Covers'', which was released on March 26, 2014.


Background, release, and composition

Anderson-Lopez said that choosing Lovato was inspired by the singer's own past experiences, which were "similar to Elsa's journey of leaving a dark past and fear behind and moving forward with your power." Lovato indeed identified with the song's context, stating "It's so relatable. Elsa is finding her identity; she's growing into who she is and she's finally accepting her own strength and magical powers. Instead of hiding it, like she's done all her life, she's letting it go and embracing it." Lovato's
cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song relea ...
was released as a single by
Walt Disney Records Walt Disney Records is an American record label of the Disney Music Group. The label releases soundtrack albums from The Walt Disney Company's motion picture studios, television series, theme parks, and traditional studio albums produced by its ...
on October 21, 2013. While Menzel's version is performed in the key of
A-flat major A-flat major (or the key of A-flat) is a major scale based on A, with the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Its key signature has four flats. The A-flat major scale is: : Its relative minor is F minor. Its parallel minor, A-flat m ...
and a tempo of 137
beats per minute Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ...
, Lovato's version is performed in the key of
G major G major (or the key of G) is a major scale based on G, with the pitches G, A, B, C, D, E, and F. Its key signature has one sharp. Its relative minor is E minor and its parallel minor is G minor. The G major scale is: Notable com ...
and a tempo of 140 beats per minute, with Lovato's vocal range spanning from the low note of G3 to the high note of E5. In this version, the line "Let the storm rage on" is omitted from the chorus, along with its unusual accompanying chord progression, and an extra "Let it go" is substituted in its place.


Music video

The music video was released on November 1, 2013. It was directed by Declan Whitebloom.


Live performances

Lovato performed the song on several occasions. Lovato first performed the track at the 2013 Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade. On November 13, 2014, Lovato performed the song at the 2014
Royal Variety Performance The ''Royal Variety Performance'' is a televised variety show held annually in the United Kingdom to raise money for the Royal Variety Charity (of which King Charles III is life-patron). It is attended by senior members of the British royal ...
. The song was also a part of Lovato's setlist for
The Neon Lights Tour The Neon Lights Tour was the third headlining concert tour by American singer Demi Lovato, in support of her fourth studio album, '' Demi'' (2013). The first leg of tour began in North America on February 9, 2014 at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, ...
and the Demi World Tour. In May 2015, Lovato performed the song for 2nd Indonesian Choice Awards.


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Certifications


Other cover versions

Many cover versions have been recorded internationally. In February 2014,
Alex Boyé Alex Boyé (born 16 August 1970) is a British-American singer, dancer, and actor. He was named the "2017 Rising Artist of the Year" in a contest sponsored by Pepsi and Hard Rock Cafe. Early life Boyé was born in London, England, on 16 August ...
recorded a light Africanized tribal cover of the song, featuring the One Voice Children's Choir and Lexi Walker as Elsa. The Piano Guys' cover version mixes parts of
Antonio Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist and impresario of Baroque music. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lifetime was widespread ...
's ''Concerto No. 4 in F minor, Op. 8, RV 297, "L'inverno" (Winter)'' from '' The Four Seasons'' into the original. The music videos of both covers were filmed in the ice castles in
Midway, Utah Midway is a city in northwestern Wasatch County, Utah, United States. It is located in the Heber Valley, approximately west of Heber City and southeast of Salt Lake City, on the opposite side of the Wasatch Mountains. The population was 3,84 ...
. French deathcore/metalcore band
Betraying the Martyrs Betraying the Martyrs are a French metalcore band formed in Paris in 2008. The band currently consists of vocalist Rui Martins, guitarists Steeves Hostin and Baptiste Vigier, bassist Valentin Hauser, drummer Boris le Gal, and keyboardist Victor ...
covered "Let It Go", as a single from their album ''
Phantom Phantom may refer to: * Spirit (animating force), the vital principle or animating force within all living things ** Ghost, the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that can appear to the living Aircraft * Boeing Phantom Ray, a stealthy unm ...
'' in July 2014. In February 2014, a parody
YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...
r by the name of Malinda Kathleen Reese used
Google Translate Google Translate is a multilingual neural machine translation service developed by Google to translate text, documents and websites from one language into another. It offers a website interface, a mobile app for Android and iOS, and an API ...
to translate the song's lyrics between multiple languages and back to English, revealing expected humorous mistranslations, with lines such as "Let us very angry" and "Give up, tune in, slam the door." Actress
Lea Michele Lea Michele Sarfati (; born August 29, 1986) is an American actress, singer, songwriter, and author. She began her career as a child actress on Broadway, appearing in productions of ''Les Misérables'' (1995–1996), ''Ragtime'' (1997–1999) ...
sang the song as her character
Rachel Berry Rachel Barbra Berry is a fictional character and one of the two main protagonists, alongside Mr. Schue in the Fox musical comedy-drama series '' Glee''. The character is portrayed by actress Lea Michele, and appears in ''Glee'' from its pilot ...
in the first episode of the sixth and final season of the Fox musical
comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...
television series '' Glee''. Idina Menzel portrays Rachel's biological mother in the series. It has been alleged by some commentators that one of the promotional songs for the
2022 Winter Olympics The 2022 Winter Olympics (2022年冬季奥林匹克运动会), officially called the XXIV Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Beijing 2022 (2022), was an international winter multi-sport event held from 4 to 20 February 2022 in Bei ...
, "The Snow and Ice Dance," has suspicious similarities with "Let It Go." A Chinese media outlet cited technical analysis of the two songs: Both songs employ a piano as the major instrument, have similar prelude chords and an eight-beat introduction, and they run at almost exactly the same tempo. Actress Maisie Williams sang the song in an
Audi Audi AG () is a German automotive manufacturer of luxury vehicles headquartered in Ingolstadt, Bavaria, Germany. As a subsidiary of its parent company, the Volkswagen Group, Audi produces vehicles in nine production facilities worldwide. ...
commercial that aired during the broadcast of
Super Bowl LIV Super Bowl LIV was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2019 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion Kansas City Chiefs defeated the National Football Conferenc ...
in early February 2020. On May 21, 2020, a parody "Let Them Go" was aired by the
Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-owne ...
: "Let them go, Let them go, Just shove them out the door ...". This called for the ending of school closures in response to COVID-19 and was performed by Canberra singer Kirrah Amosa. In September 2020, Japanese composer Yoshiki created a new classical arrangement of the song for the ''Disney My Music Story: Yoshiki'' special on
Disney+ Disney+ is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned and operated by the Media and Entertainment Distribution division of The Walt Disney Company. The service primarily distributes films and television se ...
. In the 2021 film '' Encanto'', in the song "All of You", near the end of
Bruno Madrigal Bruno Madrigal is a fictional character who appears in Walt Disney Animation Studios' 60th feature, '' Encanto'' (2021). Voiced by John Leguizamo, he is Mirabel's ostracized uncle who has the ability to see the future. He is the subject of the s ...
's rap verse, he tells his sister Pepa to "Let it in, let it out, let it rain, let it snow, let it gooooooooo", and during the beginning of this line, the opening piano notes from "Let It Go" are heard. During the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. A ...
a video went viral around the world of a young child named Amelia Anisovych singing the song to families seeking refuge sheltering in a
Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Ky ...
basement. Kristen Anderson-Lopez (the song's co-writer) and
Idina Menzel Idina Kim Menzel ( ; ; born May 30, 1971) is an American actress and singer. Particularly known for her work in musicals on the Broadway stage and having achieved mainstream success across stage, film and music, Menzel has garnered the honori ...
(who performed the song in the film) both tweeted support to the young girl.


See also

*
List of best-selling singles This is a compendium of the best-selling music singles. The criterion for inclusion is to sell at least ten million copies worldwide. The singles listed here were cited by reliable sources from various media, such as digital journalism, news ...
*
List of number-one dance singles of 2014 (U.S.) The U.S. Dance Club Songs chart is published weekly by ''Billboard''. It compiles the weeks most popular songs from a sample of reporting DJ's around the country. The first number-one song of 2014 was "Unconditionally" by Katy Perry. With remixe ...


References


External links

* (on official
Walt Disney Animation Studios Walt Disney Animation Studios (WDAS), sometimes shortened to Disney Animation, is an American animation studio that creates animated features and short films for The Walt Disney Company. The studio's current production logo features a scene fr ...
channel) * (on Disney UK's official channel) {{Authority control 2010s ballads 2013 singles 2013 songs 2014 singles American songs Best Original Song Academy Award-winning songs Demi Lovato songs Gaon Digital Chart number-one singles Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media Idina Menzel songs Pop ballads Song recordings produced by Emanuel Kiriakou Songs written for animated films Songs from Frozen (franchise) Songs with feminist themes Songs written by Kristen Anderson-Lopez Songs written by Robert Lopez Songs written for films Walt Disney Records singles Songs involved in plagiarism controversies