Bieber, Drake, Arcade Fire nab Grammy nominations

Canadian teen-pop sensation Justin Bieber has his first Grammy nomination, while compatriots Arcade Fire and Drake also nabbed high-profile nods for the annual music awards bash Wednesday.

Bieber and Drake will face off for best new artist, competing with Florence and the Machine, Mumford and Sons and Esperenza Spalding.

It's one of four nominations for Drake, who's also up for best rap album.

And Arcade Fire is up for album of the year — arguably the top prize to be handed out at the Feb. 13 show.

The Montreal rockers will compete with four of the biggest acts of the past year: Eminem, Lady Gaga, Lady Antebellum and Katy Perry.

They were also nominated for best rock performance by a duo or group with vocals and best alternative music album.

The nominations were announced Wednesday night during an hour-long special on CBS from Club Nokia in Los Angeles.

Eminem leads

Resurgent rapper Eminem was the leading nominee. His Recovery CD was nominated for 10 awards, including the biggest prizes: album, song and record of the year.

Bruno Mars was not far behind with seven nominations, while Lady Antebellum, Jay-Z and Lady Gaga all had six each.

Neil Young earned three nominations — including one for best rock album — while other Canadians up for awards include:

• Melanie Fiona (co-nominee with John Legend, The Roots and Common for best rap/sung collaboration for Wake Up! Everybody).
• Alex Cuba (a nominee for best Latin pop album for Alex Cuba).
• Northern Cree (a nominee for best Native American music album for Temptations: Cree Round Dance Songs).
• Marc-André Hamelin (a nominee for best instrumental soloist performance,without orchestra, for Hamelin: Études).
• Rush (a nominee for best long form music video for Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage).
• Measha Brueggergosman (a nominee for best classical vocal performance for Wagner: Wesendonck-Lieder).
• Michael Bublé (a nominee for best male pop vocal performance for Haven't Met You Yet).
• Michael J. Fox (a nominee for best spoken word album nominee for A Funny Thing Happened On the Way To The Future...).

Bieber, who's also up for best pop vocal album, appeared via satellite from London after his first nomination was announced.

"Wow, it feels amazing. I can't believe I'm in this position," said the teen, clad in a shiny black jacket with a matching V-neck T-shirt and baseball cap.

"I want to thank all my friends, everybody. I want to thank the board.  I don't know what to say."

When host LL Cool J pressed the mop-topped 16-year-old from Stratford, Ont., on how he felt — noting that he was now a superstar — Bieber added: "It feels good. I don't think of myself as a superstar, I think of myself as just a regular person living my dream, you know?"

Later, a seated Bieber — wearing an L.A. Kings hat backward — performed his Favorite Girl while strumming an acoustic guitar.

He admitted on Twitter later that he was caught off-guard by the news.

"Ok kinda shellshock. Well not kinda...totally shellshock. Don't even remember what I said. HOLYCRAP."

Drake, meanwhile, had been nominated for two Grammys at the show earlier this year, months prior to the release of his platinum-selling debut, Thank Me Later.

But the 24-year-old from Toronto was still eligible for best new artist, thanks to a change in requirements that allowed previous nominees to be nominated for the award as long as they didn't win before.

Drake wasn't in L.A. for the show — in fact, he was spotted earlier in the evening sitting courtside at a Toronto Raptors home game.

Cee Lo Green, Jay-Z and Carrie Underwood were also among the nominees named.

During the show, Katy Perry played her hit California Gurls in a glittering dress outside the Staples Center, while Bruno Mars and Train also performed.