PHOTOS: Newport Folk Festival Day One – Lauryn Hill, Deer Tick, Amble, and more (07.24.26)

Editor’s note: The last full weekend of July means one thing in New England: Newport Folk Festival, the vaunted music festival first held in 1959 that has since become one of the most unique music festivals in the world. For the fifth consecutive year, New England Sounds was proudly represented by contributing photographer Brianna Gately.

Courtney Marie Andrews was the first set captured of the weekend. Andrews is a singer-songwriter from Phoenix, AZ, who has been active since 2007 and just released a new studio album titled Valentine. For her set, Andrews performed ten songs from Valentine. After that was Brooklyn-based lo-fi artist Hudson Freeman, currently signed to Mom + Pop music. Freeman is promoting his new project, Is A Folk Artist, that came out in May of 2025, he performed multiple tracks from that record, as well as some unreleased music.

Berklee College of Music alumni Tiny Habits made a lot of noise on the Fort Stage as one of Friday’s standout sets. They’re gearing up to release their second studio album, Keepers, later this month. They were briefly joined onstage by Medium Build, who performed Matty Healy’s verse on the song “Anything He Was.” On the Quad Stage, duo veteran actor Michael Shannon joined forces with musician Jason Narducy to perform R.E.M. covers. Shannon and Narducy have been working together since 2014, recording and touring covers of popular artists. Last year, they took their R.E.M. tribute project on the road.

Alt-rock group Wednesday was next up on the Fort Stage. Wednesday put out their sixth studio album, Bleeds, last year and dedicated most of their setlist to that release. Irish folk trio Amble were over on the Harbor Stage, performing songs from their debut album, Reverie, as well as a magnificent John Prine cover. Amble will be back in the New England area in November to perform at Boston’s House of Blues.

Aussie rocker Courtney Barnett played an afternoon set promoting her latest release, Creature of Habit, released in March. Barnett was circling back to New England after having performed in Boston.

Providence-based band Deer Tick played the penultimate set on the Quad Stage, performing songs from their new record Coin-O-Matic, released in June.

One of the weekend’s most anticipated sets was the legendary Lauryn Hill. Hill’s 1998 album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is widely considered on the most important records in the hip hop genre. Hill is a tough act to catch live with a rather unconventional touring schedule. She performed a variety of material from both her solo career and her time with The Fugees, joined onstage by the band Snacktime for a portion of her set.

Photos – Newport Folk Festival 2026 (Day One) at Fort Adams State Park in Newport, RI: