British Dad Reacts Alan Jackson’s 9/11 Song… I Finally Understand

Added: 2026-05-25

[00:00:00]Crisis and challenges strip away anyone's pretenses, revealing a person's true character, their values, their resilience. When that safety net is gone, you get to actually see what is in here. But that doesn't just go for one person. It can go for a family, a community, or a whole nation of people.

[00:00:18]And I think this is a perfect example of that, where something that was intended to bring a country down actually made them come together even more.

[00:00:27]Like the patriotism really shone through. And I don't think I've ever seen that in my lifetime, in any other country.

[00:00:35]Even though this is something that the world felt, watching this video is hopefully going to show me what your perspective was on this situation and what happened. So while you're listening to this, if you want to, please do tell me where you were, how it made you feel, and I promise you I will do my very best to read every single comment and put a like on it or respond, uh in the most respectful way possible.

[00:01:02]I'm going to watch this now. Thank you so much for recommending it to me.

[00:01:08]Tonight Alan Jackson is a nominee for four of tonight's awards. And the songs that he writes always tell it like it is.

[00:01:15]Simple truths that come from his heart.

[00:01:18]When he went went to bed uh late last week, he couldn't sleep because of an idea that he had for this song. It kept running through his head. So early in the morning, he got up and he wrote this song. And we're honored that he's chose to do it for the first time in front of anybody. Please welcome Mr. Alan Jackson.

[00:01:32]>> [cheering] >> Okay, I'm going to try not to pause this very much, but the fact that he this is his words, he wrote this song, this is his truth, uh that makes this 10 times better. Um I already know this man has an amazing voice, so I know this is going to be good. But like he just said, he couldn't sleep, so he got up and he wrote this song.

[00:01:57]So, this must mean an awful lot to him.

[00:02:02]>> [cheering] [music] >> Where were you when the world [singing and music] stopped turning on that September day?

[00:02:27]Out in the [singing] yard, your wife and children were going on some stage in LA.

[00:02:35]Did you stand [singing] there in shock at the sight of that black smoke rising [singing] against that blue sky? [music] Did you shout out in anger and fear for your neighbor, or did you just sit down and cry?

[00:02:54]Did you weep for [music and singing] the children who lost their dear loved ones?

[00:02:59]Pray for the ones who don't know.

[00:03:02]Did [music] you rejoice for the [singing] people who walked from the rubble? Sob for [music] the ones left below.

[00:03:11]Did you burst [singing] out in pride for the red, white, and blue?

[00:03:15]The heroes [music and singing] who died just doing what they did.

[00:03:19]Did you look up to heaven for some kind of answer?

[00:03:23]And look at yourself and what really matters.

[00:03:29]Just the fact that he's gone through all the different ranges of emotions that so many Americans must have felt that day is is quite inspirational.

[00:03:38]It's quite inspirational. I hear a lot of people talk about what they felt that day, but also I hear a lot of Americans talk about how the day after felt to them.

[00:03:49]It was something different, completely different when the fear and the shock gave way, then all of a sudden it was the most patriotic day that I've ever heard of.

[00:04:00]>> [snorts] [music] [music and singing] [singing and music] >> Hey, I I know I'm pausing it way too much and I'm going to stop, but like he's literally just being brutally honest. Like he's just says he's a simple man, he writes songs, but he can't tell you the difference between Iraq and Iran. Like he's he's not saying he's a political dude, he's not saying he's got any like skin in the game kind of thing. He's telling you how he felt as an American.

[00:04:45]Much respect for that.

[00:04:47]>> [music] [singing] [music] [singing] [music] >> Yes, sir.

[00:05:07]>> [music and singing] [music] [music] [singing] [music] >> Did you know where the sunset first time in ages? Speak to some stranger on the street.

[00:05:57]Did you lay down at night and think of tomorrow? Go out and buy you a gun.

[00:06:05]Did you turn off that violent old movie you're watching and turn on I Love [music] Lucy reruns?

[00:06:14]Did you go to church and hold hands with some stranger? Stand in line and give your own [music and singing] blood.

[00:06:23]He's literally talking about all the ways that people comforted themselves, but not just themselves, the community.

[00:06:29]This is the beginnings of when people became more together because of some shared trauma.

[00:06:35]Like Like that's what he's talking about. Did he go to church and hold hands with a stranger? Like You don't hear of that.

[00:06:43]You don't hear that.

[00:06:44]Did you just stay home and cling tight [singing] to your family? Thank God you had somebody [music] to love.

[00:06:56]I'm just a singer [singing] of simple songs. [music] I'm not a real political man.

[00:07:03]I watch [music] CNN, [singing] but I'm not sure I can tell you the difference in [music] Iraq and Iran.

[00:07:12]But I know Jesus and I talk to God, and I remember this from when I was young.

[00:07:20]Faith, [music] hope, and love [singing] are some good things he gave us.

[00:07:25]And the greatest [music and singing] is love.

[00:07:29]I'm just a singer of simple songs. I'm not a real political man.

[00:07:36]>> I watch CNN, but [music and singing] I'm not sure I can tell you the difference in our rock and our rain.

[00:07:45]But I know Jesus and I talk to God and I remember this from when I was young.

[00:07:54]Faith, hope, and love are some good things he gave us.

[00:07:59]And the greatest [singing] is love.

[00:08:03]Yo, I know this is a country song, but it's not a song, it's a story about his experience and his shared experience.

[00:08:12]He's literally using his voice, he's using his words to not just spread a message, it's more like explain a situation. And um country music always surprises me. It is one of the last storytelling genres, but this I think surpasses that. This comes as something as a voice of a nation who have gone through something that changed the world itself.

[00:08:37]And the words that he's saying I think can relate to a lot a lot of people. And I couldn't possibly imagine what it must be like for you Americans, but um it's nice to see that he's not putting a twist on it.

[00:08:53]He's not trying to change it. He's just being honest about who he was, what he felt, and what the people around him experienced.

[00:09:03]Man man's really good at writing.

[00:09:05]And the greatest is love.

[00:09:10]And the greatest is love.

[00:09:16]Where were you [singing] when the world stopped turning?

[00:09:20]That September day.

[00:09:27]>> [music] [applause] >> Now, I know that that wasn't the national anthem or anything, but I still removed my hat anyway just out of respect because I remember [snorts] where I was. I was a kid. I come home from school and the first thing it hit the building.

[00:09:54]And [snorts] I thought I was too young to understand what it was.

[00:09:57]I didn't know.

[00:09:59]But when the second one hit, I I that's when I I knew within myself that this was just like intentional. And and just everything was different from then on.

[00:10:10]Then it it I realized that the world is not perfect. Then I realized that we are all vulnerable in ways that I didn't think could imagine. I thought my life could affect me. But actually, there is things in this world that could affect everybody's life.

[00:10:29]And that's not even my country. So, I can't imagine what you guys must have felt. But I've heard time and time again from multiple Americans that the day after 9/11, that was the most patriotic day that has ever ever happened in our lifetime.

[00:10:46]And I can totally see why.

[00:10:49]>> [snorts] >> And many countries need to learn from this. This needs to be studied in a way not from like a conspiracy theory way or not from like a way as in like, "Oh, we how can we prevent this from happening again?" Sure, some of those things need to be looked into. But I mean studied in a way as in what a true country feels in a time of crisis, how it can expose what those people are truly in their hearts, how it can bring people together. Now, there's no wonder that this country that we're talking about, America, is the most patriotic country in the world because if you can come together like that after something so extreme, then you have every right to be proud of yourself. Should be proud of everyone that sacrificed that day and all the families, all the military, and everybody in the country. From your school teachers to your firemen to to literally the mothers at home worrying about their children. You name it.

[00:11:48]You should all be proud of yourself.

[00:11:52]And what's hard to be proud of yourself when there's something so bad happened.

[00:11:56]But from what I see you guys genuinely came together. You raised your flag up high and you realized nothing was going to stop you from loving who you are and where you live. And I, as an Englishman, have so much respect for that.

[00:12:16]I [snorts] wish my country could feel that patriotic, just 10% of that. Now, I'm not wishing that anything bad happens to my country to bring it to that point.

[00:12:28]But I am wishing that we could have some sort of level of patriotism the way you guys do. Please do tell me down in the comments your story if you would like to. You don't have to. I promise you, I give you my word, I will sit all day and all night and go through all of those comments. I will read them. I will put a like on them. I will show respect and try and reply to as many as I can just out of pure respect. Um thank you so much for recommending in this video to me.

[00:13:01]I can clearly see why it inspired you as a people.

[00:13:07]And well done.

[00:13:11]If you were alive during this generation and [snorts] you were part of not so much the rebuilding after that, but part of all the way the country came together, not just as a family, not just as a community, but as a nation, then you should have pride in yourself.

[00:13:30]You are as an Englishman, I'll say something, okay?

[00:13:35]It is an honor to be proud of who you are and where you're from.

[00:13:40]I say this knowing full well that I don't seem to have that right at the minute.

[00:13:47]But I want nothing more.

[00:13:50]I would love my country back.

[00:13:53]>> [snorts] >> And I'm glad to see that America did it the right way.

[00:13:59]They didn't let it destroy them.

[00:14:01]It made them come together more. Much respect to you all.

[00:14:05]And God bless. I hope you have a wonderful day. Thank you for sharing this moment with me.

[00:14:10]I would also just like to add on the end of this that I don't make any money off this. The money goes straight to the creator uh of the actual song. And I do believe from what I've seen on Google that he gave the money generated from this to charitable organizations, which I have massive respect for. So, hopefully, this video itself raises a little bit of money for the good causes out there and the people affected.

[00:14:39]Much love and God bless. Thank you.