Jon Batiste leads Grammy nominations — Justin Bieber, Doja Cat, H.E.R. closely follow

Canadian musical talent was in the spotlight today at the nominations announcement for the 64th Grammy Awards, as some of the country's biggest hitmakers — like Justin Bieber and Drake — were named, as well as virtuosos in the classical world and behind-the-scenes stars.

But American musician Jon Batiste, the bandleader of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, emerged as the biggest surprise at this year's Grammys: The multi-genre performer and recent Oscar winner scored the most nominations — with 11 on Tuesday.

Batiste earned a nod for album of the year nod for We Are and one for record of the year for Freedom — a feel-good ode to the city of New Orleans. His nominations span several genres including R&B, jazz, American roots music, classical and music video.

Justin Bieber, Doja Cat and H.E.R. each came away with the second-most nominations with eight apiece by the time the Recording Academy was done announcing its nominees for the Jan. 31 show. 

Several of Bieber's nominations were for his single Peaches, which features Toronto-raised R&B singer Daniel Caesar. It's nominated for record of the year, song of the year, best R&B performance and best music video.

Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo have seven nods each.

The Weeknd's three nominations were a surprise to many after the pop star said he wouldn't allow his label to submit his music. Earlier this year, he called the Grammys "corrupt" after he received zero nominations for the last Grammys despite having 2020's biggest single, Blinding Lights.

The Toronto artist was nominated for his work on album-of-the-year projects, including Doja Cat's deluxe edition Planet Her and Kanye West's Donda. His third nomination was for his appearance on West's single, Hurricane, which also features Lil Baby.

"What I like is the fact that no one is thinking about what happened before, what was the controversy, what was the noise, or where was this artist making music last year," said Harvey Mason Jr., the Recording Academy's CEO. 

He said voters focused on the "excellence of music" while considering nominees like Batiste and Kacey Musgraves, whose work also crosses over into different categories.

"The voters are truly evaluating music and not getting caught up in the reputations of any other outside noise or any history of artists," he said. "With that in mind, I think they're voting for things that they are acknowledging as excellence."

But Bieber, who is originally from Stratford, Ont., and The Weeknd are in good company when it comes to Canadians with Grammy nods this year. 

Toronto rapper Drake has two nominations. He's up for best rap album and best rap performance, alongside Future for the track Way 2 Sexy. 

Cuban-Canadian Alex Cuba is named twice for songs from his latest album Mendo: best Latin pop album and best musica urbana album.