Jessica Care Moore facts for kids
Jessica Care Moore is an amazing American poet born on October 28, 1971. She is a super talented writer, performer, and producer who has shared her powerful words all over the world. Jessica is also the boss of Moore Black Press, a company that publishes books, and she started the jess Care moore Foundation, which helps people learn to read. She even won a special award called the Alain Locke Award from the Detroit Institute of Arts in 2013!
Jessica has written several books of poetry, including The Words Don’t Fit in My Mouth, The Alphabet Verses The Ghetto, and We Want Our Bodies Back. Her poems have been heard on famous stages like Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center in New York City, and even at the London Institute of Contemporary Arts. In 2023, a newspaper called The Detroit News wrote a special article about her life and work.
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Early Steps to Stardom
Jessica Care Moore was born in Detroit, Michigan, in 1971. She first became well-known when she won a TV show competition called "It’s Showtime at the Apollo" five times in a row! That's a record! Her performance of a poem called "Black Statue of Liberty" helped her meet with big publishing companies. But instead of signing with them, she decided to start her own publishing company, Moore Black Press, in 1997.
Her very first book, The Words Don’t Fit In My Mouth, sold more than 20,000 copies! That's a lot of books! Besides her own work, she has also published other poets like Saul Williams and Danny Simmons, who helped create Def Poetry Jam. She even published a book by NBA player Etan Thomas.
Her Powerful Writing
Jessica Care Moore's poems have been included in many different collections of writing. Some of these include 44 on 44 and Bum Rush The Page: A Def Poetry Jam. She is the youngest poet to be featured in a big book called the Prentice Hall Anthology of African American Women’s Literature. This means her work is placed alongside famous writers like Zora Neale Hurston, Alice Walker, and Maya Angelou.
You might have seen Jessica Care Moore on the cover of many magazines and newspapers, like The New York Times, Detroit News, and Essence. Her work has been shared in print and online magazines all over the world.
Jessica also created a multimedia show called God is Not an American. It was put on by The Apollo Theater. She was also the host and a producer for a TV show about poetry called Spoken, which was shown on The Black Family Channel.
In 2017, Jessica staged a cool, futuristic dance and poetry show called Salt City. It was performed again in 2019 at the Charles H. Wright Museum in Detroit. Her work is also proudly shown at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Connecting with Hip Hop Music
Jessica Care Moore's poetry has been featured on albums by famous hip hop artists. You can hear her words on Nas’ Nastradamus album, Jeezy's Church in These Streets, and Talib Kweli’s Attack The Block mix tape. She was also a returning star on Russell Simmons’ HBO show Def Poetry Jam, which brought poetry to a wider audience.
Creative Music and Art Projects
Jessica Care Moore has also created her own music and art projects. Her solo show, The Missing Project: Pieces of the D, is a special tribute to her hometown of Detroit. In 2011, she created her first art installation called NANOC: I Sing The Body Electric. Her work has even been shown in museums like the American Jazz Museum in Kansas City.
Her first music album, Black Tea: The Legend of Jessi James, came out in 2014. It featured other talented artists like Talib Kweli and Roy Ayers. Jessica was also featured on a spoken-word album called Eargasms. In 2023, she was one of the main performers at a concert called "Queens of the Song Age" in Detroit.
Making a Difference
Jessica Care Moore uses her powerful voice as an artist to help others. She has performed for the United Nations World AIDS Day Commemoration two years in a row to help fight AIDS. She also helped organize a concert called Hip-Hop-A-Thon in San Francisco. This concert helped teach people about AIDS in Black and Latino communities. Jessica has also performed at events like AIDS WALK Opening Ceremonies in many cities across the United States.
About Jessica Care Moore
Jessica Care Moore lives, writes, and enjoys her life in downtown Detroit. Besides her amazing artistic work, she is also the founder and CEO of Moore Black Press. She is also the person behind Black WOMEN Rock! and the Jess Care Moore Foundation, which works to help people improve their reading skills. Jessica has received many awards, including the Knight Arts Award in both 2019 and 2017, and the Alain Locke Award from the Detroit Institute of Arts.
