Female pop stars are taking the Grammy Awards by storm this year, and as they vie for wins in marquee categories, many Canadians could share in their victory.
Several homegrown songwriters and producers who contributed to music from Beyonce, Charli XCX, Sabrina Carpenter and Taylor Swift hold nominations at Sunday's awards ceremony.
And they're only some of the many Canadians who made a showing among the contenders.
The 67th Grammy Awards hosted by Trevor Noah airs on Citytv and CBS at 8 p.m. ET.
The majority of categories will be handed out at a pre-broadcast ceremony that streams on the Grammys website and YouTube starting at 3:30 ET.
Here are six Canadian highlights to look out for:
THE BEYONCE FACTOR
With a leading 11 nominations for her country-infused "Cowboy Carter" album, wins by the Queen Bey could spotlight a raft of other artists involved in its creation. Among them, Toronto producer Nathan Ferraro, Calgary-raised Elizabeth Lowell Boland and German-Canadian songwriter Megan Bülow share two nominations for “Texas Hold ‘Em” which is up for song of the year and best country song. Producer, engineer and mixer Dave Hamelin, a member of Montreal band the Stills, is also nominated for the project in the album of the year category.
SERBAN GHENEA
Having an incredible 50 Grammy nominations to his name, the Romania-born, Canada-raised producer could push his 21 wins even higher with some very high-profile pop projects. He holds five noms, many in key categories that include record of the year for Taylor Swift's “Fortnight,” as well as album of the year for Sabrina Carpenter’s “Short n’ Sweet” and Swift’s “The Tortured Poets Department.”
CANADA'S "BRAT" MOMENT
Hitmaker Henry Walter has worked with pop superstars that include Rihanna and Katy Perry, and this year the Halifax native, who produces under the name Cirkut, could become a certified "Brat." Walter was involved in British singer Charli XCX's breakout 2024 project, which is nominated for album of the year, while he's also linked to “360,” among the tracks up for record of the year.
KAYTRANADA
After rising from Montreal's hip-hop club scene, the DJ-producer picked up two Grammys a few years back. Now, he has a chance to pocket three more. Kaytranada, born Louis Kevin Celestin, is contending for best dance/electronic album with "Timeless," as well as best remixed recording and best dance/electronic recording.
YANNICK NEZET-SEGUIN
Montreal's classical commander is already a Grammy favourite with four trophies on his mantle. This year, he could lock in another with help from Hollywood star Bradley Cooper. The pair were part of “Maestro: Music By Leonard Bernstein,” an album companion to Cooper's Netflix movie that was made with the London Symphony Orchestra. It's up for best compilation soundtrack for visual media. Nézet-Séguin also holds two nominations for separate projects in the best opera recording category.
THE ENGINEERS
Hardly the most glamorous category, the studio engineers are the unsung heroes of making records, and this year many recognized by the Grammys are Canadian. Five of the six projects nominated for best engineered album, non-classical, have involvement from Canucks.
Frequent Bruno Mars collaborator and Burlington-Ont. native Charles Moniz is nominated as part of the team behind Lucky Daye’s “Algorithm,” while Toronto’s Charlotte Day Wilson is up for her sophomore R&B album “Cyan Blue” alongside Jack Emblem and Jack Rochon.
Also vying for that trophy is Alberta-raised Shawn Everett, part of the team behind Kacey Musgraves’ “Deeper Well,” and Ghenea, who was involved in Sabrina Carpenter’s “Short n’ Sweet.” Vancouver-based Mitch McCarthy is nominated as part of the team behind Willow’s “empathogen.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 31, 2025.
David Friend, The Canadian Press
