Upon accepting, Menken invited frequent collaborator Glenn Slater, with whom he had previously worked on Disney's Home on the Range (2004) and the Broadway musical adaptation of The Little Mermaid (1989), to serve alongside him as his co-writing lyricist once again. Veteran Disney composer Alan Menken had just recently completed scoring Walt Disney Pictures' Enchanted (2007) when he received a telephone call from Walt Disney Animation Studios in 2008, who invited him to compose the music for the studio's then-upcoming animated film Tangled. The concept of an animated film based on the Brothers Grimm fairy tale " Rapunzel" originated from Disney animator Glen Keane in 1996. Since its release, the song has been recorded and covered by various musical artists, including musical theatre performers David Harris and Lucy Durack, and classical singer Jackie Evancho. Subsequently, "I See the Light" won both the Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Song and the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media. The song was nominated for the Academy and Golden Globe awards for Best Original Song in 2011, losing both, the former to " We Belong Together" from Toy Story 3 (2010) and the latter to " You Haven't Seen the Last of Me" from Burlesque (2010). In spite of its mixed reviews, "I See the Light" has garnered numerous awards and accolades. Critically, both the song and the scene have been compared to similar romantic musical sequences from preceding Disney animated films, including " Kiss the Girl" from The Little Mermaid (1989) and " A Whole New World" from Aladdin (1992), both of which are love songs also composed by Menken. However, the "lantern sequence", during which "I See the Light" is performed by Rapunzel and Flynn, received high critical acclaim, with journalists and commentators praising its visuals and use of 3-D. "I See the Light" received polarized reviews from film and music critics, who were largely ambivalent towards the song's content, questioning its originality. Menken would later reveal that, out of Tangled's 5 songs and musical numbers, he is most proud of "I See the Light". Initially, Menken and Slater had written a more anthemic version of "I See the Light" before finally re-working it into a gentler, simpler and more folk-oriented song. Subsequently, Walt Disney Animation Studios hired veteran Disney composer Alan Menken and lyricist Glenn Slater to write the film's songs. Tangled was originally conceived by Disney animator Glen Keane. Lyrically, "I See the Light" describes the developing romantic relationship between Rapunzel and Flynn, and is featured as the seventh track on the film's soundtrack album. A duet originally recorded by American recording artist and actress Mandy Moore and American actor Zachary Levi in their respective film roles as main characters Rapunzel and Flynn Rider, the folk-inspired pop ballad serves as both the film's love and theme song. " I See the Light" is a song written by composer Alan Menken and lyricist Glenn Slater for Walt Disney Animation Studios' 50th animated feature film Tangled (2010).