Once Upon a Time was initially scheduled for release in 2011, but problems with clearance made Savage push back its release date.[3] The album comprises twenty one tracks, including two bonus tracks.[4] Savage named the album Once Upon a Time in order to portray the positive stories about her life. She wanted to motivate other upcoming artists by telling them that, once upon a time, she was a little girl in Isale Eko who dreamt of being a star.[3] While speaking to Berklee College of Music's Brenda Pike, she hinted to possibly recording songs with Chuck Harmony, Warren Oak Felder and Sosick. Moreover, she said the album would include records in her native language, Yoruba, and would incorporate musical styles such as pop, R&B and soul.[5]
Once Upon a Time features collaborations with Don Jazzy, Flavour N'abania, Leo Wonder, Iceberg Slim, Sarkodie and General Pype. Its production was handled by Don Jazzy, Warren Oak Felder, Sauce Wilson, Harmony Samuels, GospelOnDeBeatz, Del B, Raydar Ellis and Spellz.[6] On May 26, 2013, Savage revealed the album's cover art and track list during a private album listening party held at the Wheatbaker Hotel in Ikoyi, Lagos.[7] Guests in attendance included Banky W, Waje, Tunde Demuren, and Eku Edewor, among others.[7]
The album's lead single, "Kele Kele Love", was released on November 4, 2010. The accompanying music video for the song was filmed in Los Angeles by Jerry Chan, Savage and Tee Billz.[8] The album's second single, "Love Me (3x)", was released on April 30, 2011. Its music video was also filmed in Los Angeles by Sesan Ogunro.[9] Savage won Best Vocal Performance (Female) and Best R&B Single for "Love Me (3x)" at The Headies 2012.[10] The album's third single, "Without My Heart", was released on December 5, 2011. It features vocals by Don Jazzy and peaked at number 37 on Afribiz's Top 100 music chart.[11][12] The song's music video was directed by Mark Hofmeyr;[13] it was nominated for Best African Act Video at the 2013 4Syte TV Music Video Awards[14] and for Most Gifted Female Video at the 2013 Channel O Music Video Awards.[15] Furthermore, the song earned Savage and Don Jazzy a nomination at the 2013 Nigeria Entertainment Awards.[16][17]
The album's fourth single, "Ife Wa Gbona", was released on October 8, 2012. It features vocals by Nigerian singer Leo Wonder and peaked at number 66 on Afribiz's Top 100 music chart.[11] The music video for "Ife Wa Gbona", which was directed by Bolaji Kekere-Ekun,[18] won Best Highlife and was nominated for Best Use of Costumes, Best Indigenous Concept and Video of the Year at the 2013 Nigeria Music Video Awards (NMVA).[19] The Spellz-produced track "Folarin" was released on December 13, 2012, as the album's fifth single.[20] The album's sixth single, "Olorun Mi", was released on June 3, 2013. Its music video was directed by George Guise.[21] Savage told Ebuka Obi-Uchendu of Channels TV's Rubbin' Minds that the song pays tribute to the Dana Plane Crash, Goldie Harvey and Justice Esiri. "Eminado" was released as the album's seventh single. In the aforementioned interview with Vanguard newspaper, Savage said she and Don Jazzy came up with the song's idea while rehearsing in the studio. The Clarence Peters-directed music video for "Eminado" was released on November 4, 2013.[22]
Savage dedicated the song "Written All Over Your Face" to her fiance for the role he played in her life. "Written All Over Your Face" was criticized for having lewd and explicit lyrics.[23] The Moe Musa-directed music video for "Wanted" was released on May 27, 2014.[24] The video's release triggered an angry backlash among critics.[25]
Once Upon a Time was met with generally positive reviews from music critics. Ayomide Tayo of Nigerian Entertainment Today awarded the album 4 stars out of 5, praising Savage's songwriting skills and commending the producers for bringing "depth and range to the album's production."[26] TayoTV's Ronke Adepoju assigned a score of 8.75/10, applauding Savage for "showing her versatility by working with different artistes from different genres" and saying she "managed to pull it off with the minimum help possible."[27]Hip Hop World Magazine granted the album 4 stars out of 5, acknowledging Savage for "producing an album that accommodates her songwriting skill and pop ambitions."[28]
In a less enthusiastic review, TooXclusive's Ogaga Sakpaide gave the album 2.5 stars out of 5, criticizing it for lacking "an actual identity and organic sound".[29] Writing for YNaija, Wilfred Okiche said the album has "too many fillers, too much autotune, too much Don Jazzy and an over dependence on the gloss".[30] Okiche also wrote that "one has to dig deep to find the real substance".[30]
