List of songs about the September 11 attacks
Updated: 11/4/2025, 4:37:28 PM Wikipedia source
This list contains musical works which were inspired by or contain lyrics referring to the September 11 attacks.
Tables
| Artist/composer | Title | Album | Year | Description |
| Emilie Autumn | "By The Sword" | 2001 | Released as a charity single. | |
| Dan Bern | "NYC 911" (Unreleased) | 2001 | ||
| The Charlie Daniels Band | "This Ain't No Rag, It's a Flag" | Live! (bonus track) | 2001 | |
| Cher | "Song for the Lonely" | Living Proof | 2001 | |
| Curse | "Nichts Wird Mehr So Sein Wie Es War" | n/a, released as a free download | 2001 | |
| Sage Francis | "Makeshift Patriot" | Released as a single | 2001 | Lyrics include "Don't waive your rights with your flags" |
| Kristy Jackson | "Little Did She Know (She'd Kissed a Hero)" | Released as a single | 2001 | Written in response to the 9/11 Tragedy. The song makes reference to a passenger on Flight 93. Responses to the song were later turned into a book. |
| Michael Jackson | "What More Can I Give" | n/a (never released) | 2001 | Performed at an October 2001 benefit concert. Originally intended as a benefit single, but it was never released commercially. |
| Srpski Talibani | "Gori Njujork" | Srpski Talibani Slusajte dok vas ne uhvate za | 2001 | Anti-American song from Republika Srpska. |
| Toby Keith | "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American)" | Unleashed | 2001 | Toby Keith wrote this song in response to his father's death and the 9/11 attacks in 2001. At first, he was reluctant to record the song and decided to only play it live for military personnel. Later however, Marine Corps General James L. Jones convinced him to record it saying that it was his "duty as an American citizen to record the song." |
| Live | "Overcome" | V | 2001 | |
| Lonestar | "I'm Already There" | I'm Already There | 2001 | It was released on April 16, 2001. The music video premiered to CMT on June 7, 2001 and was directed by Michael Salomon. On April 21, 2003, they released another version of the music video to recast the song as a tribute to the military. |
| Paul McCartney | "Freedom" | Driving Rain | 2001 | |
| Petey Pablo | "Raise Up (USA Flag Remix)" | 2001 | ||
| Cary Pierce of Jackopierce | "I Believe in America" | I Believe in America | 2001 | Released 30 October 2001 |
| Smash Mouth | "Out Of Sight" | Smash Mouth | 2001 | As they were in the process of creating their self titled album, the attacks occurred. The song was dedicated to the victims. |
| Taylor Swift | "Didn't They?" | Unreleased | 2001 | |
| The Weepies | "Safe as Houses" | Released Online | 2001 | |
| Wu-Tang Clan | "Rules" | Iron Flag | 2001 | Rapper Ghostface Killah speaks about the attacks in the first verse of the song, demanding to know who is responsible. |
| Tori Amos | "I Can't See New York" | Scarlet's Walk | 2002 | The song describes the experience of an airplane passenger on September 11, 2001, circling over New York City and unable to see the World Trade Center. |
| William Basinski | The Disintegration Loops | 2002 | ||
| Bon Jovi | "Undivided" | Bounce | 2002 | |
| Bon Jovi | "Another Reason To Believe" | Bounce | 2002 | |
| Jon Bon Jovi & Richie Sambora | "America The Beautiful" | 2002 | ||
| Box Car Racer | "Elevator" | Box Car Racer | 2002 | This song was written from the perspective of a jumper from the towers and from the perspective of someone watching from below. |
| Box Car Racer | "Watch The World" | Box Car Racer | 2002 | Lyrics include "I watched the smoke, as it grew darker, and blew up through the roof. I watched the fed, saw them panic as the fire grew. I saw Virginia, get rid of Langley, and its secrets too." |
| Camel | "For Today" | A Nod and a Wink | 2002 | |
| The Charlie Daniels Band | "The Last Fallen Hero" | Redneck Fiddlin' Man | 2002 | |
| Coldplay | "Politik" | A Rush of Blood to the Head | 2002 | Written the day of the attacks. Chris Martin told NME that it reflects his realization of mortality after 9/11. |
| The Cranberries | "New New York" | Stars: The Best of 1992–2002 | 2002 | |
| Steven Curtis Chapman | "Remember the Day" | 2002 | "Remember the day/The courage the valor/We ran to the towers/At such a great cost" | |
| DC Talk | "Let's Roll" | Let's Roll: Together in Unity, Faith, and Hope | 2002 | |
| Bo Diddley | "We Ain't Scared of You" (a.k.a. "My Eagle Is Pissed") | 2002 | ||
| Ani DiFranco | "Self Evident" | So Much Shouting, So Much Laughter | 2002 | This spoken word performance uses the 9/11 attacks as a way to criticize the US government. |
| DJ Sammy | "Heaven" (9/11 Remix) | 2002 | ||
| Linda Eder | "If I Had My Way" | Gold | 2002 | |
| Linda Eder | "If I Should Lose My Way" | Gold | 2002 | |
| Eminem | "My Dad's Gone Crazy" | The Eminem Show | 2002 | Lyrics include: "More pain inside of my brain than the eyes of a little girl inside of a plane aimed at the World Trade" |
| Glassjaw | "Tip Your Bartender" | Worship and Tribute | 2002 | |
| Gorillaz feat. D12 & Terry Hall | "911" | Bad Company (soundtrack) | 2002 | |
| Jack Hardy | "Ground Zero" | Vigil | 2002 | Released on a benefit album organized by Suzanne Vega, entirely of original songs about 9/11. |
| Alan Jackson | "Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)" | Drive | 2002 | |
| Bert Jansch | "Bright Sunny Morning" | Edge Of A Dream | 2002 | Lyrics include "With both towers ablaze the world watches on TV / It's all there for the whole world to see / Yeah, it took twenty minutes to change history." |
| Toby Keith | "My List" | Pull My Chain | 2002 | Tells about a firefighter who decides to spend more time with his family after witnessing the 9/11 attacks on TV. |
| Killswitch Engage | "Life to Lifeless" | Alive or Just Breathing | 2002 | |
| Talib Kweli | "The Proud" | Quality | 2002 | A 9-11-oriented tribute. |
| Guns | "OK, Let's Roll" | Waking the Dead | 2002 | |
| Christine Lavin | "Firehouse" | Vigil | 2002 | Released on a benefit album organized by Suzanne Vega, entirely of original songs about 9/11. |
| Megaherz | "Glas Und Tränen" | Herzwerk II | 2002 | Literally "Glass And Tears" (and originally titled "Blut Und Tränen", "Blood And Tears"), contains an account of the violent atmosphere during and ideologies behind the attacks. |
References
- Allmusichttps://www.allmusic.com/artist/p530236
- "Emilie Autumn at Musical Discoveries"https://web.archive.org/web/20110718133329/http://musicaldiscoveries.com///reviews/emilieautumn.htm
- www.lyrics.comhttps://www.lyrics.com/lyric/15524338/Beastie+Boys/An+Open+Letter+to+NYC
- "Little Did She Know...Song"http://www.littledidsheknow.com/
- "Little Did She Know... Book"http://www.littledidsheknow.com/kristy/index.php?e=kristy&p=book
- Quay & Damico 2010, p. 218.
- archive.orghttps://archive.org/details/gorinjujork
- USA Todayhttps://www.usatoday.com/life/music/2002/2002-06-13-toby-keith.htm
- BBC News Onlinehttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/1639502.stm
- Country Grindhttp://blogs.browardpalmbeach.com/countygrind/2011/09/ten_september_11_songs_by_artists_you_actually_like.php
- September 11 in Popular Culture: A Guide
- NPRhttps://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2012/11/12/164978574/divinity-from-dust-the-healing-power-of-the-disintegration-loops
- The FADERhttp://www.thefader.com/2002/05/27/coldplays-9-11-feelings-surface-on-i-a-rush-of-blood-to-the-head-i
- RapGeniushttp://rapgenius.com/Eminem-my-dads-gone-crazy-lyrics
- USA Todayhttps://www.usatoday.com/life/music/2001-11-21-alan.htm
- Quay & Damico 2010, p. 221.
- Angerer, S. "Megaherz am Scheideweg" Archived 2016-09-18 at the Wayback Machine, EMP3 (article in German)http://www.emp.de/lis_megaherz_bandbrand/#hiddenFancytextband_interview4brandtextblock
- "Herzwerk II", GermanRock.de (article in German)http://www.germanrock.de/alt/m/megaherz/plattenkritik.htm
- "My Chemical Romance – Skylines and Turnstiles"https://genius.com/My-chemical-romance-skylines-and-turnstiles-lyrics
- HuffPosthttps://www.huffpost.com/entry/a-musicians-journey-through-success-heartache-reclaiming_b_57fe7fc3e4b06f314afeabc6
- CounterPunch.orghttps://www.counterpunch.org/2002/04/02/is-protest-music-dead/
- kathleenwilliamson.comhttps://kathleenwilliamson.com/home
- Porcupine Tree: In Absentia Documentary
- Le Mondehttp://www.lemonde.fr/seq-spe-fermee/article/2005/08/25/manhattan-kaboul_682510_667725.html#ens_id=671658
- "Michael W. Smith :: News"https://web.archive.org/web/20140222023920/https://www.michaelwsmith.com/news.html?n_id=2842
- The Gospel According to Bruce Springsteen: Rock and Redemption, from Asbury Park to Magichttps://archive.org/details/isbn_9780664231699/page/150
- Rendering the Unthinkablehttps://rendering.911memorial.org/artists/blue-man-group/
- RapGeniushttp://rapgenius.com/50-cent-patiently-waiting-lyrics
- National Public Radiohttps://www.npr.org/2004/05/06/1873807/mary-chapin-carpenters-grand-central-song
- The Washington Posthttps://archive.today/20120716104418/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/430868971.html?dids=430868971:430868971&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Oct+26,+2003&author=Michael+Deeds&pub=The+Washington+Post&desc=A+Shade+Bolder,+Living+Colour+Is+Back&pqatl=google
- audramcdonald.nethttp://audramcdonald.net/recording/go-back-home/
- "Sarah McLachlan, Demystifying Her Muse" Archived 2017-03-19 at the Wayback Machine, NPR.orghttps://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=3860571
- Quay & Damico 2010, p. 223.
- www.lyrics.comhttps://www.lyrics.com/lyric/6722594/Ryan+Adams/My+Blue+Manhattan
- www.lyrics.comhttps://www.lyrics.com/lyric/15524338/Beastie+Boys/An+Open+Letter+to+NYC
- "Excite エキサイト : ミュージック (音楽)特集・MISIA"http://ent2.excite.co.jp/music/feature/2004/misia/lis_rev.html
- "Rapgenius"http://rapgenius.com/Twista-hope-lyrics
- Wheatus – Hometownhttps://genius.com/Wheatus-hometown-lyrics
- The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/sep/15/september11.politicsphilosophyandsociety2
- El Comerciohttps://www.elcomercio.com/tendencias/entretenimiento/muerte-hijo-cantante-delfin-quishpe.html
- New York Magazinehttp://nymag.com/arts/popmusic/reviews/16844/
- Billboardhttps://web.archive.org/web/20080205014213/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/58561/bloc-party-grows-up-on-sophomore-album
- "Don't Die A Martyr For Me - Dawnstar"https://web.archive.org/web/20170707120656/http://antiwarsongs.org/canzone.php?id=55033&lang=en
- "genius"https://genius.com/Serj-tankian-empty-walls-lyrics
- Chronhttps://www.chron.com/entertainment/music/article/Suzanne-Vega-casts-New-York-as-character-on-new-1610047.php
- CBS Newshttps://www.cbsnews.com/news/buzzcuts-new-music-17-07-2007/
- Telegram & Gazettehttps://www.telegram.com/story/news/local/north/2007/07/09/suzanne-vega-album-praises-nyc/52855246007/
- MusicOMHhttps://web.archive.org/web/20140919144509/https://www.musicomh.com/reviews/albums/suzanne-vega-beauty-and-crime
- CBS Newshttps://www.cbsnews.com/news/five-for-fighting-sings-9-11-anthem-superman/
- "Beyoncé Talks 'A Star Is Born' And 'I Was Here' With Reuters | The Official Beyoncé Site"https://web.archive.org/web/20110807030414/http://www.beyonceonline.com/us/news/beyonc%C3%A9-talks-star-born-and-i-was-here-reuters
- "Childish Gambino — Freaks and Geeks Lyrics"https://genius.com/118535
- ""America" by Imagine Dragons"http://songmeanings.com/m/songs/view/3530822107859425798
- "Good Road - United 93"http://reverbnation.com/jackwarshaw/album/19166-good-road
- "Jackyl News - Yahoo! Music"http://new.music.yahoo.com/jackyl/news/artist-namejackyl-id1013049-unleashes-anti-bin-laden-song--12055980
- North Shore Newshttps://www.nsnews.com/local-arts/lily-kershaw-makes-it-personal-on-midnight-in-the-garden-2962495
- Gawkerhttps://www.gawker.com/heres-the-story-behind-that-catchy-everybody-knows-shi-1666324773
- Spinhttp://www.spin.com/2015/03/heems-eat-pray-thug/
- Come From Away | Now on Broadwayhttps://comefromaway.com/
- ""Real Life" by Imagine Dragons"https://genius.com/15767106
- Consequence of Soundhttps://consequence.net/2021/09/eminem-venom-let-there-be-carnage-skylar-grey-last-one-standing-stream/