Young musicians have showcased their talent on the emerging artists stage at the Yackandandah Folk Festival over the weekend.

Different genres of music were heard as artists aged from 12 to 25 displayed their craft in front of thousands of people walking the main street of Yackandandah.

Some 17,000 tickets were sold to the main stages throughout the town, and it was the emerging artists that really struck an extra chord with audiences.

An Acoustica Competition was also held on Sunday with Albury's Laylah Bines winning the right of passage to play on the main stage will ticketed artists at the 2027 festival.

Wangaratta 16-year-old musician Harrison Kelly took out second place for a $200 cash prize.

They were two of 20 performers to be seen on the emerging artists stage over the weekend.

Laylah is a singer-songwriter and for the past few years she has been performing at numerous venues and events sharing soulful performances across the region.

Her unique blend of country/folk and heartfelt songwriting transcends beyond her years, leaving audiences with insightful and powerful stories through enriching melodies.

Harrison is a singer-songwriter who produces all his songs that fall under an indie-pop genre and he has recently released an EP titled Trust Issues.

He has crafted emotionally honest music with a modern edge.

Festival event organiser and judge of Acoustica, Sarah Webster, was herself a product of the emerging artists initiative that has been a major part of the festival's growth over the years.

The initiative was the brainchild of the late Annette Walton-Guerin and Sarah and the emerging artists alumni had a reunion to celebrate and remember Annette.

"I met Annette when she was the Indigo Shire youth officer and started performing and stage managing at The Shed (former location of emerging artists stage)," she said.

"I practically lived at The Shed for a good 10 years while I performed and after it was sold we used several shop fronts to gather and eventually it found a spot as 'The Street Stage'.

"It's a safe space for young people and it's okay to be playing the wrong chord or forgetting your lyrics - we're not super professional and it doesn't have to be super scary.

"The great thing about the actual Yack festival is the whole vibe is like that and we can do it on a smaller learning scale for everyone so if they are to ever get to perform on the main stages, it's still going to be chill, we just need to be a little more professional."

Leading main stage acts Scott Cook and Ella Hooper even dropped by to perform at the street stage on Saturday.