"[2] He was raised in Philadelphia, and attended the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.
Among the performers he booked was Talking Heads frontman David Byrne, with whom he became friends.
[3] In 1988 Byrne founded Luaka Bop, and in 1990 hired Evelev to run the label.
'"[7] Evelev has produced albums by John Zorn, Scott Johnson, Malombo, Tom Zé, Geggy Tah, Daniel Lentz, Shuggie Otis, Zap Mama, William Onyeabor, and others.
[8][9] He has produced albums for the labels Icon (which he founded), Nonesuch, Luaka Bop, Aoede, Warner Bros., and Manteca.