Hip-Hop Wired Presents: CRT FRSH (Certified Fresh) Playlist 8.8.25

After a bit of a hiatus for personal reasons, CRT FRSH (Certified Fresh) is back again with a collection of tracks we hope land on your playlists for the bit of summer we have left. This week, we’re featuring one of the best rappers out of the south, along with one of Brooklyn’s best rappers who returned to the essence a decade ago.

I want to explain how I approach curating the CRT FRSH playlist. Most importantly, I don’t segregate my Hip-Hop. Every form of music from the main cultural tree deserves a listen and a look. When I construct the playlist, I want to include all regions across the States and, when applicable, across the globe. I also want to entertain every fan of Hip-Hop, not just those who enjoy one segment of it. Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s get to it.

The CRT FRSH playlist is a labor of love. We don’t take payments, nor do we do favors. We only add joints to our playlist that fit the theme and vision we’re going for and don’t seek to waste the listener’s time. Further, we don’t stick to one lane of Hip-Hop. We believe that all aspects of the music should get some light, whether it’s young lions in the trenches or those hoping for that one shot to blow up to grizzled veterans puffing out their chests with lots more to say. — D.L. Chandler, Lead Curator, CRT FRSH

For this week’s update, I’m breaking up the format and speaking as myself. My mother suddenly passed away just over two weeks ago, and her passing has gutted me to the core. However, one thing about my mom is that she believed in me, and I know she would want me to keep doing my job to the best of my ability. I wouldn’t be a writer, I wouldn’t be anything in fact, without my mother’s guidance. May she rest in peace.

This week, we opened up with the fitting “The Birds Don’t Sing,” which finds the Brothers Thorton, aka Clipse, honoring the life and legacy of their parents. Sean Price, who is my favorite modern-era rapper, was featured on Tame One and Parallel Thought’s “Haha da Rah Rah” in 2008. Both of these titans have passed to the next realm, but their music lives on.

JID is one of the top champions of bars in the game today, and his command of flow, concept, delivery, along with performance, happens all over the track “VCRs” from his new set, God Does Like Ugly, and features a standout verse from Vince Staples. Benny The Butcher’s Summertime Butch 2 project is as solid as its predecessor and finds the Buffalo rapper shining over a Mike WILL Made-It track.

Gunna, who still has his share of fans despite the rumors that dogged him over the years, dropped his latest album, The Last Wun, and we’re featuring the “f*ck witcha boy” track. We follow that up with Chicago’s Mick Jenkins, who JID counted as one of his favorites in a recent interview with The Joe Budden Podcast, linked with the talented Smino for “456 Semn.”

Salute to all the other artists that made this week’s playlist, which includes Drake, Central Cee, Che Noir, 38 Spesh, The Other Guys, Travis Scott, Playboi Carti, Future, DEAD PERRY, P-Dirt, Raz Fresco, Daniel Son, Joey BadA$$, MAVI, Niontay, PLUTO, Knownvibes, J Gold, PVT Nate, Lil Yachty, Smoke DZA, Marcelus Airlinez, Kai Ca$h, Young Nudy, Latto, Coupe, Eaz Fonzarelli, Offset, Stack Moolah, and Planet Asia.

Check back in two weeks for 20 new and fresh CRT FRSH joints. For now, enjoy!

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Photo: Getty