The Weeknd, Drake, Justin Bieber up for American Music Awards
Taylor Swift leads nominees; Ed Sheeran, The Weeknd follow closely behind
The trio of Canadian musicians who have topped the music charts in recent weeks – The Weeknd, Drake and Justin Bieber – have also scored a raft of American Music Awards nods.
Canadian R&B singer The Weeknd nabbed five AMA nominations on Tuesday, including artist of the year and song of the year for his hit Can't Feel My Face.
That puts him and singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran, who also scored five nods, just behind Taylor Swift, who leads with six.
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It's been a breakout year for The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye. He has been dominating the Billboard charts alongside former Torontonian and collaborator Drake as well as fellow Canadian Bieber.
Drake was also recognized with nods for favourite artist - rap/hip-hop and favourite album rap/hip-hop for If You're Reading This, It's Too Late.
Bieber rounded out the Canuck contingent with a nod for his song Where Are U Now. The track, created with Skillrex & Diplo, is nominated for collaboration of the year.
The American Music Awards nominees are based on key fan interactions as reflected in Billboard Magazine and on Billboard.com, including album and digital singles sales, radio airplay, streaming, social activity and touring.
Jennifer Lopez will host the awards show, which will air on ABC on Nov. 22.
Selected nominees include:
Artist of the Year:
- Luke Bryan
- Ariana Grande
- Maroon 5
- Nicki Minaj
- One Direction
- Ed Sheeran
- Sam Smith
- Taylor Swift
- Meghan Trainor
- The Weeknd
New Artist of the Year:
- Fetty Wap
- Sam Hunt
- Tove Lo
- Walk The Moon
- The Weeknd
Song of the Year:
- Wiz Khalifa featuring Charlie Puth, See You Again
- Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars, Uptown Funk!
- Ed Sheeran, Thinking Out Loud
- Taylor Swift, Blank Space
- The Weeknd, Can't Feel My Face