En gång i tiden (transl. Once Upon a Time) is the second studio album by Swedish singer Benjamin Ingrosso, released on 15 January 2021 by TEN Music Group. Ingrosso's first album in Swedish, he is credited as a co-producer on every song. Dealing with themes of love, friendship, and childhood, Ingrosso described the album as an homage to 1990s pop, with influences from Orup, Mauro Scocco, and Lisa Nilsson. In mid-2020, Ingrosso was a contestant on the Swedish music reality series Så mycket bättre; two of his covers from the series are included on the track listing, including "Långsamt farväl", originally by Nilsson. The lyrics of "Längst inne i mitt huvud" were taken from a poem by Swedish writer Barbro Lindgren. "Flickan på min gata", written when Ingrosso was 12–13 years old, was released as a single on 11 January 2021.
The album debuted at number one on the Swedish national albums chart published by the Swedish Recording Industry Association. A follow-up album, En gång i tiden (del 2), was released on 16 April 2021; En gång i tiden was subsequently listed as En gång i tiden (del 1) on some streaming services.
Contents
Critical reception
En gång i tiden received mixed reviews from domestic music critics. In a review for Dagens Nyheter, the album's modern pop sound was praised, but criticism was aimed at the vocals' use of Auto-Tune and the lyrics' lack of emotion. A reviewer for Nöjesguiden noted the memorable lyrics and nostalgic sound but found the album lacked a common theme. Aftonbladet and Gaffa both highlighted Ingrosso's maturity in recording Swedish-language songs compared to his English-language debut in 2018, noting the more personal subject matter of their lyrics. A two-star review from Borås Tidning praised Ingrosso's songwriting but felt that the album's tracks were "safe", unexciting, and not memorable.
Track listing
Credits adapted from Tidal.