Once Upon a Crime (album)

Once Upon a Crime is the debut studio album by American New York-based hip hop duo the Godfathers. It was released on November 19, 2013, through Psycho+Logical-Records. Production was handled by member Necro with one song, "Unsub", co-produced by member Kool G Rap. It features the lone guest appearance from Mr. Hyde. Songs "Heart Attack" and "Wolf Eyes" were released as singles.

Background
Necro and Kool G Rap first announced their Godfathers project and collaboration in 2011 and released two mix CDs consisting of fifty previously released songs from the pair, The Pre-Kill Volume I in November 2011 and then The Pre-Kill Volume II in July 2012. They had initially announced that their first official album would be released in the first half of 2012, but Once Upon a Crime would not launch until November 2013. The album was executive produced by Necro and Domingo.

Critical reception
Once Upon a Crime received generally mixed to positive reviews from music critics. Mark Bozzer of Exclaim!gave the album 7 out of 10, praising the duo's synergy. Jay Balfour of HipHopDX noted, "the casual fan or those keeping up with G Rap's late career output might find a handful of songs worth mining, but without a previous investment in the over-the-top style, listening through is a test of endurance". Matt Jost of RapReviews concluded: "yet despite some fundamental flaws Once Upon a Crime is a record hip-hop can be proud of, one that represents the part of the family with ties to the underworld (and sometimes the afterworld) with aplomb".

Personnel

 * Ron "Necro" Braunstein – vocals, producer, executive producer
 * Nathaniel "Kool G Rap" Wilson – vocals, co-producer (track 11)
 * Christopher "Mr. Hyde" Catenacci – vocals (track 16)
 * Domingo Padilla – executive producer