Nod for The Weeknd

Canadian songwriter hears congratulations from Trudeaus, Martin Short

Singer and writing partner Stephan Moccio snag Oscar nomination for ’Earned It’,

Stephan Moccio awoke early Thursday to the news that he and the Weeknd were Oscar nominees for their boudoir-noir Fifty Shades of Grey smash “Earned It” — and for the remainder of the day, it was his phone that was tied up.

The St. Catharines, Ont.-raised songwriter received congratulations from Martin Short, Rita Wilson, Fifty Shades director Sam Taylor-Johnson and even Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife, Sophie. Moccio called his parents and he called his Toronto tailor (in that order, he promises).

By lunchtime in L.A., the only vital person Moccio had yet to talk to was Abel Tesfaye himself, though Moccio figures the singer was just as inextricably bound to his phone as he was.

“We’ve been back and forth; it’s been a frenetic morning, in a good way,” Moccio said of Tesfaye and his team.

“I’m a dreamer. So in the most humble way, of course I’d be lying if I said I never dreamt of this.”

Moccio and Tesfaye were nominated alongside co-writers (and Tesfaye’s constant co-conspirators) Ahmad (Belly) Balshe and Jason Daheala Quenneville for the award, and together they’ll face stiff, unusually poppy competition for Best Original Song thanks to tunes trilled by Lady Gaga and Sam Smith.

Moccio met Tesfaye back in fall 2014, when Tesfaye was first mulling a pop recalibration. Moccio, the classically trained maestro behind such sweet, swelling fare as the “I Believe” Olympic anthem, had recently written a song for the forthcoming Fifty Shades for Skylar Grey and knew that the director wanted another, this time sung by a man.

Of course he had just the guy in mind. Composing the slinky slow jam was a quick, frictionless affair, and the quartet then submitted it for the necessary rounds of approval.

And that’s when Moccio was forced to, well, earn it.

“I had six days to produce the song,” he recalled. “It’s a pretty big production. So I didn’t sleep for those six days.”

Obviously, it was worth it. The Weeknd also reeled in seven Grammy nominations — three of which were shared by Moccio — but it’s tough to compare to the scale of the Oscars.

“When you think of all the red carpets in the world, the Oscars is at the top of the list,” Moccio said. “I don’t know any bigger red carpet.”

Navigating the blinding glare of Hollywood’s most glamorous night sounds like a taller task for Tesfaye — probably pop’s most infamously press-averse wallflower — than the cordial Moccio.

Moccio, who co-wrote Miley Cyrus’s “Wrecking Ball,” describes his unlikely relationship with Tesfaye as “pure fire,” built on a “great deal of trust.”

Indeed, the Weeknd has invited Moccio onstage for major moments in the past, including a Jimmy Fallon appearance and a headlining Coachella set, though Moccio had to decline the latter. It stands to reason then that Moccio could find himself onstage for the Feb. 28 gala if the nominees perform the songs as expected. “That would be amazing for me,” he enthused.

At the very least Moccio should, by then, manage to find a free moment to exchange congratulations with his co-nominees.

“We’ll both call each other before the show and see who has better hair.”