Joe Pace may look, act and talk like a typical 18-year-old. Upon closer investigation, one will find that he is not typical by any means.

It could be his attire - shorts in December - or maybe his occupation ­- clerk/refreshment counter clerk/janitor, “or whatever my manager tells me to do,” at the Carmike Cinema in LaGrange.

Pace is different.

Maybe it is because of how most people know him - the guitar-playing kid at the theater.

Described by some as a combination of Jack Johnson and John Mayer - two artists that he calls favorites - Pace has been playing guitar since he was 12, when a family friend named Red bought him his first guitar.

“Red was like 72 years old, and he gave me the guitar one year for Christmas. We were in Walmart and I told him I wanted to try out the guitar, so he bought it for me,” Pace recalled.

And it has been a pleasant ride for Pace since then.

“This is me, my music, and, of course, my girlfriend,” said Pace, a student at LaGrange High School and the son of Jeff Pace and Linda Gibbons.

He plays other artists’ tunes, as well as some of his own, and he sings too. In fact, one day, while sitting in his bedroom at his apartment with the window open, singing and playing, Pace caught the attention of the owner/operator of Innerpain Records in Atlanta.

“He says we are going to do an album,” Pace said. “He was downstairs visiting his girlfriend, and they heard me playing, and he walked outside to see where it was coming from and hollered up, asking me if that was me playing, and I said, “Yeah,” and he said, “Come on, talk to me.’ “

Influenced by artists like Mayer, Johnson, Brandon Heath and Josh Turner, Pace said he carries his guitar with him wherever he goes. He has five - four of them at home.

“This one stays in my car,” he said, pointing to the guitar which draws the interest of those who see him play.

It is an acoustic guitar, pretty typical too, except that the body is covered with more than 147 signatures.

“I had more than that, but time and wear has erased some,” he said. “Right here, in this empty spot, there had been about 50 signatures.”

They aren’t the signatures of famous people. Pace gets his friends and a few people who he thinks to be “interesting” to sign it.

His best friend, Adam Barnett, said, “I think that is just a tangible representation of what a great person that Joe is. He relates well to all kinds of people.”

Of his buddy’s music, Barnett said, “Joe doesn’t try to force it. His abilities are genuine, and the music he performs comes from his heart. I think that is what makes him special. A lot of people in the music business work hard at what they do, they look for the hook or the angle, but not Joe. He puts so much feeling into the chords, the notes and you can even feel it in the vibrations from the instrument.”

Though Pace would love “to have a career in music” after high school, he said, “I am not sure how feasible that would be.” His plans for college including getting a degree in psychology.

“I really don’t know what I want to be … I have got time to decide.”

Until then, he is happy - content to be the guitar-playing kid at the movie theater.

— “Neighbors” is a feature of LaGrange Daily News which spotlights people who are in the news, have unusual hobbies or are otherwise interesting. To suggest a person who could be profiled, contact Becky Holland at bholland@lagrangenews or (706) 884-7311, Ext. 229.