That Realness Is Now Closed!!!

At a time when chasing money supersedes chasing dreams, Detroit's Finale has proudly done the opposite. A former automotive engineer for the Big Three, the Morehouse drop-out decided that he would devote five years to his passion of hip-hop before deciding what his life's calling would truly be.

"That was seven years ago," jokes Finale. With rich histories in both the auto industry and music, he opted for the latter, perhaps a bit more stable in these times. "I wanted things to happen naturally," says the emcee. In his community, open microphones, showcases and emcee battles prompted Finale to mingle with local talents like One.Be.Lo and Guilty Simpson, while winning the respect of producers including Black Milk, Nottz and the immortal J Dilla. The career and personal sacrifice of Finale is captured on A Pipedream And A Promise, featuring the producers mentioned.

01. Arrival & Departure feat. Awesome Dre (Prod. By V-Tech and Apollo Brown)
02. Style (Prod. By Kev Brown)
03. Pay Attention (Prod. By Slimkat); Interlude - Beat The Drums (Prod. By Shamus O’Flannigan)
04. The Waiting Game feat. Invincible (Prod. By Khrysis); Interlude - feat. Prince Whippa Whip (Cold Crush)
05. One Man Show (Prod. By Black Milk) (Scratches By DJ Presyce)
06. Jumper Cables (Prod. By Nottz)
07. A Reason (Prod. By Ta'Raach)
08. Motor Music (Prod. By Black Milk)
09. Heat (Prod. By J Dilla) (Scratches By DJ Sicari)
10. Issues (Prod. By Dimlite); Interlude - feat. Prince Whippa Whip (Cold Crush)
11. Brother’s Keeper (Prod. By Nottz)
12. The Senator (Prod. By Waajeed)
13. What You Mean To Me (Prod. By M-Phazes)
14. A Pipe Dream And A Promise feat. Monica Blaire & Allan Barnes (The Blackbrds) (Prod. By Oddisee)
15. BONUS TRACK - Paid Homage (R.I.P. J Dilla) (Prod. By Flying Lotus)

In 2001, Starr joined the Low Budget Crew, which also included D.C. locals Oddisee, Kev Brown, Critically Acclaimed, and Cy Young[1]. His connection with producer Oddisee landed him a deal with New York-based indie label Halftooth Records, which released his debut single, "If", featuring Talib Kweli and Asheru, in early 2004. "If" and its B-side, "Walk the Walk", were included on the Halftooth Records compilation You Don't Know the Half. The single led to a number of guest appearances including The Foreign Exchange's "The Answer", Wordsworth's "Head High", and Symbolyc One and Illmind's "Guilty Pleasures".

In June 2006, Starr released The Starr Report, a mixtape featuring most of his unreleased guest appearances on albums by the likes of Supastition, Cesar Comanche, The Foreign Exchange, and Kev Brown; followed by the single "Against the Grain". On August 29, Starr's debut album, Starr Status, was released, featuring production from Illmind, Khrysis, Kev Brown, Oddisee, DJ Roddy Rod and M-Phazes. Album guests included Kev Brown, Starr's Isaac Jones partner Sean Born, Supastition, Median, Talib Kweli and Asheru.

Starr Status garnered the rapper attention from magazines including Scratch, The Source, and JIVE, who called Starr "one of the best MCs in the game"

1. Starr Status (Intro) (prod. by Oddisee)
2. Against The Grain (prod. by Illmind)
3. Relentless (feat. Kev Brown) (prod. by Kev Brown)
4. The Same Pt. 2 (prod. by Oddisee)
5. Mr. Nice Guy (feat. Wayna) (prod. by Oddisee)
6. Middle Fingaz (prod. by M-Phazes)
7. U Will (prod. by DJ Roddy Rod)
8. Never Too Late (feat. Sean Born) (prod. by Kev Brown)
9. Carry On (feat. Supastition & Darien Brockington) (prod. by Oddisee)
10. Waitin' On You (prod. by Khrysis)
11. Inside (feat Wayna) (prod. by Illmind)
12. Back At It Again (feat. Median & M-Phazes) (prod. by M-Phazes)
13. Nothing But Time (feat. Oddisee) (prod. by Young Cee)
14. Another Day (feat. Sean Born & Chronkite) (prod. by Kev Brown)
15. Know Too Much (To Go Back) (prod. by Oddisee)
16. If (feat. Asheru & Talib Kweli) (Bonus-prod. by Oddisee)