Photos: Qendresa Releases BESITOS / GAVE MYSELF 2 U, Sets November North America Tour
The London singer follows her HABIBTI feature with a video directed by Yussef Haridy.
Qendresa, the singer, songwriter, DJ and producer from north west London, has released a new AA-side single, BESITOS / GAVE MYSELF 2 U, paired with a video for BESITOS directed by Yussef Haridy. Alongside the release, she announced a six-date North America tour in November, with stops set for Atlanta, Chicago, Toronto, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Photo Credit: Yussef Haridy
Qendresa (pronounced: Chen-Dre-Sa) returns with another sizzling AA-side 'Besitos / Gave Myself 2 U' and announces a 6-date North America Tour in November hitting clubs and venues across cities including Atlanta, Chicago, Toronto, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. A reggaeton-leaning track that undulates sexuality and encourages liberation, to celebrate the release she shares a seductive video directed by Yussef Haridy. From candlelight to moonlight, diamonds and pearls glistening in the sea, Qendresa oozes feminine power and energy as she yearns for her long distance lover.
Speaking on the single, she shares:
'One soundtrack for chasing mezcal infused sunsets, and another for the heart aching drive home when the parties over'
For the visual, Qendresa returned to work with the multidisciplinary artist Sofire who worked on the artwork for her debut EP Midnight Request Line. Inspired by hot summer evenings, London living, GTA, 80s anime and female led comics like Tank Girl, the music video is a homage to everything that created Sofire and her feminine viewpoint, effortlessly carrying the mood of Qendresa's seductive vocals via a series of animated vignettes of a female protagonist taking agency and engaging in self care (smoking, bathing, driving).
About Qendresa
Qendresa knows firsthand that you don't have to dress up honesty. Hailing from north-west London - a part of town that has been synonymous over the decades with strands of sound system culture - she prefers dealing with the naked truth, which she distills then offers back to R&B lovers who recognize themselves in her vulnerability.
A singer, songwriter, producer and DJ, her often self produced, electronic tinged soul music stands out in today's contemporary soundscape as totally singular, paying homage to her affinity for the hip hop and r&b that soundtracked her formative years. When she first started making her own music at 21, she really found her voice. With inspiration coming from the grime golden era, the UK rap scene as well as stalwarts like Sade and Mariah Carey, Qendresa also found herself inspired by neo-soul purists like Erykah Badu, and left-of-center hip-hop artists like Outkast, J Dilla, and MF Doom — artists whose emotional depth and sonic individuality helped shape her approach.
Her art centres the female experience. Her breakthrough mixtape Midnight Request Line in 2020 and her follow-up, 2024's Londra both saw her speaking through a relatable, fed-up female protagonist and soon became quiet, dial-moving, underground projects that bubbled to the surface receiving co-signs by the likes of Lil Yachty, Drake, The Deftones amongst several others; leading to global performances at Milan Fashion Week.
Qendresa comes to embody the Melting Pot that is London, whether her place as a result of the Kosovar diaspora or the position she's carved out in the city's music scene as both a DJ and a live artist. She sits just as comfortably gliding over a 808-laden track or floating over an 80's rnb rhythm with her live band, and her show on NTS that she's been a regular since 2018 will find everything from soul to salsa, hip hop to house, reggaeton to rap.
2026 Live Dates
UK/EU
14 August - Way Out West, Gothenburg, Sweden
16 August - Soulection, London, UK
29 August - Elle's & L's, Berlin, Germany
AUS
3 October - Move My Way - Sydney / Aora
4 October - Move My Way - Melbourne / Naarm
USA
Nov 5 - Atlanta, G.A - The Masquerade, Purgatory
Nov 10 - Chicago, IL - Beat Kitchen
Nov 12 - Toronto, ON - Baby G
Nov 16 - New York, NY - Baby's All Right
Nov 20 - Los Angeles, CA - Echo
Nov 22 - San Francisco - Rickshaw Shop
The release follows Qendresa's appearance on Drake's album HABIBTI, on which she is featured on Slap The City, a track that reached number 39 on the Billboard Hot 100 and drew 31 million all-time streams. She also contributed vocals to Gen 5, Fortworth featuring PARTYNEXTDOOR, and Stuck from MAID OF HONOUR, and earlier in the year released the AA-side Rain In July / Be The One.
Photo Credit: Yussef Haridy
