Joe Scarborough knows plenty about being a public figure and managing the expectations of people watching him.
Between his former career in politics and his TV career as co-host of MSNBC's Morning Joe, Scarborough understood people would have a hard time accepting him as a songwriter — let alone a rock and roller.
So when it comes to playing live in his band, the Independent Counsel of Funk, Scarborough and his co-host and wife Mika Brzezinski tell Q104.3's Out of the Box with Jonathan Clarke that they mostly agree that it's best to keep his stage look close to business-as-usual.
"Mika tells me to beware," Scarborough says. "To make sure I don't look like I'm coming from a 'Just for Men' ad. So I don't want to wear a shirt [with] rolled up [sleeves]. So I'm like, 'You know what? Just embrace it.
He says he hopes to spin the look into something a bit more classic, but it's an ongoing conversation with his spouse.
"I actually want to go Bowie," he adds. "I want to go: white suit with a gold tie — Thin White Duke-era — and Mika won't let me do it. This summer, I may do it."
While Thin White Joe is a topic of debate, Brzezinski adds that fans will never see Scarborough performing in a T-shirt and jeans.
"Might as well just shoot the commercial [at that point]," she scoffs.
The Independent Counsel of Funk is releasing one song a month this year, the most recent being the Gospel-influenced "Lift Me Up," which Scarborough says is his favorite song so far by the band.
"I'd written the song the week before [a show] and decided to go in and end that show with a Gospel song," Scarborough recalls of the first time the band performed "Life Me Up." "Someone said, 'Don't we have to end with the loudest, fastest...?' I said, 'Trust me; we end with this Gospel song and we won't be able to follow it up with anything else.' And that was the closer that night, and it was pretty extraordinary. [Singers Roz Brown and Tanesha Gary] have such great voices."
Watch the full interview with Joe Scarborough and Mike Brzezinski in the player above.
Keep up with the Independent Counsel of Funk on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
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Here's the official music video for "Lift Me Up":