There are many ways to fall in love with a song. One way is by following your favorite artist and drinking up each release, already half in love with it before it has even released. Or it can happen the other way around — you can hear a song and be completely clueless about the artist behind it, but fall in love with it solely because of the music. Then you find the artist and fall in love with them as well. The latter is what is likely to happen with ‘pray.’

pray is the latest single by Queens-native Candace Camacho or as she is better known, duendita. The name “duendita” comes from The Theory and Play of The Duende by Federico Garcia Lorca where Lorca describes “duende” or “having duende” as having soul, a heightened state of emotion, expression and authenticity.

After falling in love with ‘pray,’ you are likely to fall in love with duendita. On her website she describes herself as an artist and friend to the world and in various interviews, her emotional intelligence is reflected in her thoughts on the world. In an interview with Girlboss, she thoughtfully pronounces, “When I was growing up, people would tell me that I was egotistical and narcissistic, but we’re all narcissists. The only thoughts I’ve ever heard are my own. We’re individuals, and it’s thinking about our own needs first that makes us think about others. That’s how you truly love people, by reaching an understanding with yourself.”

Find the duende with duendita’s ‘pray’

Her music reflects that duendita has certainly taken the time to get to know herself and, by extension, others. After listening to more of her tracks, I wouldn’t know exactly how to characterize duendita’s music, and neither does she — although if she had to put a genre on it, she would think that it would be Honesty. I guess I couldn’t agree more.