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As a mid-20s banjo and guitar playing singer-songwriter from Montana, Coty Hogue brings something new to the folk table. Rooted partly in her academic studies of Applachian culture in North Carolina, and partly in her love of folk music and upbringing in the rural West, Hogue’s sweet, full-bodied voice belies her youthful appearance.

Saturday marked Hogue’s fourth performance at Folklife, the nation’s largest, free festival dedicated to folk music and steeped in northwest tradition for 40 years.

Raised in small town Philipsburg in the Big Sky State, Hogue sings of nature, land, and community. Early in the 2000s, Hogue moved to Bellingham to pursue a degree from Western Washington University. As a student, juggling academics and college life, Hogue ingrained herself with the local community of folk players, serendipitously meeting fiddle player Kat Bula and guitarist Aaron Guest, who now often accompany her on stage.