Reza Askari was born in Fulda in 1986 to a father who immigrated from Iran and a German mother and started playing the piano at the age of five. At the age of eleven, he discovered the electric bass guitar and began his musical career early in local punk and jazz bands. After leaving school, Askari began his music studies in 2006, majoring in electric bass at the Cologne University of Music and Dance with Marius Goldhammer and later also on double bass with Dieter Manderscheid and Sebastian Gramss. He completed his studies in Cologne in 2012 with honours. Askari then continued his studies in the Master of Improvising Arts programme at the Folkwang University of the Arts in Essen with Robert Landfermann, also graduating summa cum laude in 2014.
From 2007 to 2010 he was a member of the Hessen State Youth Jazz Orchestra, and from 2010 to 2011 of the German National Jazz Orchestra and the European Masterclass Big Band under the direction of John Ruocco.

Askari has worked at festivals and club concerts with artists such as Marc Ducret, Lee Konitz, Benny Golson, Hayden Chisholm, Jeff Hamilton, Barre Phillips, Mark Dresser, Peter Herbolzheimer, Mike Herting, Philipe Catherine, Ramesh Shotham, Frank Haunschild, Thomas Rückert, Frank Gratkowski, Heiner Wiberny, Gerd Dudek, John Hollenbeck, Jiggs Whigham, Gary Versace, Max Herre, Clueso, Sophie Hunger, Max Mutzke, Götz Alsmann, Wolf Biermann and Carolin Kebekus and has travelled to countries such as China, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia, India, Turkey, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, the USA, Canada, Colombia, Panama and many European countries with various formations.

With his trio "ROAR", consisting of Stefan Karl Schmid, Fabian Arends and Askari, he released two albums as bandleader in 2017 and 2020. His third album "Roar feat. Christopher Dell" was released in June 2022.