Raw Poetic is a rapper, musician, producer, and beatmaker based in Washington, D.C. His insightful lyrics, melodic flows, and live instrumentation form an organic blend of jazz, rock, soul, and hip-hop. First making an impact during the 2000s as part of the rap group Panacea, he launched his solo career early in the following decade, releasing a string of self-produced, self-recorded albums as well as collaborations with Damu the Fudgemunk, Kev Brown, and K-Def. Raw Poetic and his uncle, jazz great Archie Shepp, released the acclaimed Ocean Bridges along with Damu in 2020. Some of the album's cast also contributed to 2022's Laminated Skies, which was mainly written and performed by Raw Poetic and executive produced by Damu.

Jason Moore was born in Philadelphia and raised in the Washington, D.C. area. Both of his parents were members of the Black Panther Party, and his uncle is legendary saxophonist Archie Shepp. He began rapping and writing songs during the mid-'90s, taking the solo moniker Raw Poetic, and he formed Restoring Poetry in Music, an experimental hip-hop group incorporating jazz, rock, and spoken word, while in college. The band made their debut with the 2004 release Dream Awake. Moore and producer Kyle Murdock, also of RPM, additionally formed Panacea, whose self-issued Thinking Back Looking Forward appeared the same year. Panacea signed to Rawkus for their next two albums, Ink Is My Drink (2006) and The Scenic Route (2007). Sometimes joined by Damu the Fudgemunk on turntables, they released two more full-lengths, a remix album, and an EP before disbanding in 2010. Moore and fellow RPM member Aaron Gause formed an experimental side project called Uzi Octapus, releasing their debut EP, Dear Bus Driver, in 2011. Raw Poetic EPs with K-Def (Easy Way Out) and Damu (Kilawatt: V1.5) followed in 2012.

Before he went solo, Moore took vocal lessons, bought recording gear, and taught himself to make beats and play several instruments. His first self-written, self-produced effort, the genre-blurring Charlie Brown's Parents, appeared in 2013. Second solo effort Belong Anywhere and the Kev Brown collaboration Concentrated Maneuvers both appeared in 2014, the latter on Damu's Redefinition Records. Cool Convos in Quantum Speech, with K-Def, was released by the same label in 2015, while Raw Poetic continued exploring his singular path with further independent releases like There's a Moon in the Sea (2015) and Hemlock (2018).

Continuing his fruitful partnership with Damu, the jazzy boom-bap full-length The Reflecting Sea (Welcome to a New Philosophy) appeared in 2017. The duo released three albums in 2020. Moment of Change arrived first, followed by Ocean Bridges, a cross-generational collaboration with Shepp. The more experimental project Scriptures Pictures appeared near the end of the year. Calling Forth the Spirits, a brief EP with bassist and frequent collaborator Luke Stewart (Irreversible Entanglements), was released in April 2021. BIG tiny Planet, an EP with Damu, surfaced a few months later. Laminated Skies, an atmospheric full-length co-produced by Raw Poetic and Damu, appeared in 2022, with Stewart and guitarist Patrick Fritz also contributing. ~ Paul Simpson, Rovi