Fred Moten is an American cultural theorist, poet, and scholar whose work explores critical theory, black studies, and performance studies. A 2020 MacArthur Fellow and 2016 Guggenheim Fellow, Moten is Professor of Performance Studies at New York University and Distinguished Professor Emeritus at University of California, Riverside; he previously taught at Duke University, and the University of Iowa.

His scholarly texts include The Undercommons: Fugitive Planning & Black Study which was co-authored with Stefano Harney, In the Break: The Aesthetics of the Black Radical Tradition, and The Universal Machine (Duke University Press, 2018). He has published numerous poetry collections, including The Little Edges, The Feel Trio, B Jenkins, and Hughson's Tavern.

No Idea 2025 performances:
* Established duo with double bassist Brandon López (Thursday, October 23)
* First-time duo with multi-instrumentalist Joe McPhee (Friday, October 24)
* Solo performative lecture (Saturday afternoon, October 25)
* Established duo with double bassist Brandon López (Saturday night, October 25)