Li Bai claimed that his ancestral home was in Chengji in Longxi (today's southwest Jingning, Gansu Province). Some sources indicate he was born in Changlong, Mianzhou (today's Jiangyou, Sichuan Province). His courtesy name was Taibai, and literary name Qinglian Jushi. In his middle 20s, he traveled out of Sichuan to tour eastward. In 742, the first year of the Tianbao era during Emperor Xuanzong's reign of the Tang Dynasty, Li was summoned to Chang'an by the emperor to serve in the Hanlin Academy. In 744, Li met Du Fu in Luoyang and they became good friends. In the year 755, the An–Shi Rebellion broke out, and Li accepted the invitation to work for Prince Yong, Li Lin, with the ambition of ending the rebellion and restoring national unity. After Prince Yong was killed for angering Emperor Suzong, Li was convicted of treason and exiled. On the way to exile, he was pardoned and returned home at the age of 59. In his later years, he wandered around regions south of the Yangtze River and died in the residence of his uncle, Li Yangbing, magistrate of Dangtu County (in today's Anhui Province).

Li Bai lived in the High Tang era, and his verses represent the poetry of the most glorious Tang times. He expressed, with unrestrained enthusiasm, his ardent pursuit of political ideals and yearning for success; exposed the corruption of the ruling clique with a sharp pen; and extolled the magnificent scenery of the country, showing how he despised the rich and powerful, rebelled against conventional boundaries, and pursued freedom and his own ideals.

Exaggeration and vivid metaphor are widely used in his poetry. For example, his famous lines, such as "The road to Shu is harder than to climb the sky" from  Hard Is the Road to Shu , "Do you not see the Yellow River come from the sky, rushing into the sea and never coming back?" from  Invitation to Wine , and "Its torrent dashes down three thousand feet from high, as if the Silver River fell from the blue sky" from  The Waterfall in Mount Lu Viewed from Afar , all depict marvelous views and have been passed down through the ages.

His worry and pensiveness are revealed in lines such as "But when we cut water with sword, still it will flow; when we drink to lighten grief, heavier it will grow" from  Farewell to Uncle Yun, Imperial Librarian, at Xie Tiao's Pavilion in Xuanzhou ; and "Long, long is my whitening hair; Long, long is it laden with care" from  My White Hair .

His description about profound friendship is especially touching, as seen in his lines "However deep the Lake of Peach Blossoms may be, it's not so deep, O Wang Lun, as your love for me" in his poem  To Wang Lun , and in his lines "To the bright moon, I entrust my broken heart—together with you wherever you are." from  To Wang Changling after Hearing of His Demotion to Longbiao .

His  Hard Is the Road to Shu  and  Mount Skyland Ascended in a Dream—A Song of Farewell , with their myths and legends, construct a colorful and soul-stirring realm. Other poems, such as  Ascending the Xie Tiao's Pavilion of Xuancheng in Autumn ,  Sitting Alone in Face of Mount Jingting  and  Song of the Clear Stream , depict the quiet scenery in refreshing and beautiful lines.

Artistically speaking, his poetry is novel for its imagination, strong sentiment, and vivid language, reaching the artistic peak of ancient Chinese romantic poetry. Li has been divinized as the "Immortal Poet," and more than 900 of his poems still exist today. His poems have been compiled into  A Collection of Li Taibai's Works .