"Let It Go" is a song from Disney's 2013 computer-animated feature film Frozen, whose music and lyrics were composed by husband-and-wife songwriting team Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez.

The song was performed in its original show-tune version in the film by American actress and singer Idina Menzel in her vocal role as Queen Elsa.

[4][5] 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 over the start of the film's closing credits.

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.

[16] The Daily Telegraph 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.

"[17] When interviewed in January 2014 by John August and Aline Brosh McKenna, 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 [to be Elsa].

[20] The duo took inspiration from the songs of the Disney Renaissance such as The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast and various artists including Adele, Aimee Mann, Avril Lavigne (whose 2002 debut album incidentally is titled Let Go), Lady Gaga, and Carole King.

[24] 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.

[25] Anderson-Lopez and Lopez specifically wrote the song for Idina Menzel, referring to her as "one of the most glorious voices of Broadway and an icon in musical theater."

[28][29][30] 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.

'"[32] She also disclosed that Disney Animation's Chief Creative Officer John Lasseter (who served as executive producer for Frozen) was so taken with "Let It Go" that he played her original demo of the song in his car for months.

"[22] 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.

[42] On December 6, 2013, Walt Disney Animation Studios released a video of the entire "Let It Go" sequence as seen in the movie, which has over 870 million views as of November 2023[update] on YouTube.

[43] On January 30, 2014, a sing-along version of the sequence was released and has received more than 3.2 billion views on YouTube as of November 2023[update],[44] and is one of the platform's 40 most-viewed videos.

[46][47] Rick Dempsey, senior executive at Disney Character Voices International 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.

[56] In South Korea, the Korean version of the song by Hyolyn reached number 6 on the Gaon Music Chart, selling over 300,000 digital downloads.

[39][61][62] 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.

[61] Entertainment Weekly's Marc Snetiker described the song as "an incredible anthem of liberation"[62] while Joe Dziemianowicz of New York Daily News called it "a stirring tribute to girl power and the need to 'let go' of fear and shame".

[64] 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.

[81] 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.

"[82] 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".

[206] In February 2014, Alex Boyé recorded a light Africanized tribal cover of the song, featuring the One Voice Children's Choir and Lexi Walker as Elsa.

"[211] Actress Lea Michele sang the song as her character Rachel Berry in the first episode of the sixth and final season of the Fox musical comedy-drama television series Glee.

[213][214] Actress Maisie Williams sang the song in an Audi commercial that aired during the broadcast of Super Bowl LIV in early February 2020.

[215][216][217] During the Russian invasion of Ukraine 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 basement.