By Megan Sanchez
[email protected]

Thick black-rimmed glasses, a flat-bill hat, tip wagon, and a bottle of water are all Ace Jones needs to make music.
And, of course, his acoustic guitar.

His light, emotional voice can often be heard above the din of the Pedestrian Mall, suggesting “let’s go back to California.”

That’s where now 27-year-old Ace Jones met his wife, launched his music career, and played in a band while chasing his dreams.

Ace met Shayna Jones while playing outside a Starbucks near where she worked. Ace’s roommate worked with Jones, who suggested they go see him play after work.

One thing led to another, and eventually the two started dating. On Ace’s first visit to Cedar Rapids, where her parents live, he proposed. In 2010, the couple moved to Iowa, where they now have a little family — a 3-year-old son, Phoenix-Ryan.

Once in a band, Ace is now a solo artist.

“I play a lot of different styles,” he said. “I kind of describe it as power-acoustic-rock. Sometimes, it sounds like country. Sometimes, it sounds like rock. Sometimes, it sounds like pop, so it’s an eclectic mix of all kinds of different genres.”

Hundreds of people walk by Ace when he plays on the Ped Mall. University of Iowa senior Abbey Wilkins said she loves to hear him perform.

“Every time I walk by and see him there, I have to take my headphones out, because he’s always better than whatever I’m listening to,” she said.

The Jones family has been in Iowa for about five years now, and Ace performs as his full-time job. He has a permit to sing on the Ped Mall, but he also does gigs throughout the state at county fairs, farmers’ markets, and festivals.

Going to these festivals and watching his dad play is one of Phoenix-Ryan’s favorite things. His mother said he is his dad’s “biggest little fan.”

“He likes to come onstage and sing with me,” Ace said. “Hopefully, we’ll be a duo one day here in the future.”

The family plan to go “wherever the Lord takes them,” they said. It seems he’s taking them on the road. Within a year, they plan to sell their house, buy an RV, and travel the country to continue to grow Ace’s musical career.

He’s been offered a space to play in front of many Whole Foods stores across the country, so Shayna said those will be their “anchors” while traveling. He could find other gigs along the way.

“He’s never had a bad response,” she said. “Anytime anybody hears him sing, they just fall in love with it. If we keep getting his name out there, I really think it could take off.”

Ace loves singing on the Ped Mall because it is a stress relief; as long as the weather is nice, he will go out and perform, he said.

“The one thing I really like about singing and playing guitar is just expressing your emotion and trying emotion from other people,” he said. “I’ll play a song, and then if somebody can relate to it, and they get some emotion out of it, I think I’ve done my job.”

Shayna said she looks forward to the future and is thrilled her son will get to see and experience so much on the road that other kids cannot. She said she’s never felt burdened by supporting her husband; getting to spend everyday together is a blessing.

“I’ve always seen it as an adventure, or an exciting time in our lives,” she said. “We’ve been really blessed that the Lord has given him this talent. It’s something that we get to do together, and spend every day together, and travel the country. You don’t feel like you’re working. [The adventure is] just kind of getting started.”