Critically acclaimed British singer-songwriter Rumer has released new single Before The Planes, a tribute to firefighters ahead of the 25th anniversary of 9/11. The track is out on 4th September and looks at the attacks in New York City from the perspective of the first heroic firefighter responders, as well as the lasting impact in the weeks, months and years that followed.
The artist, who shot to fame in 2010 with the million-selling Seasons Of My Soul, has a new studio album due in 2027 after recently signing to Breaking Wave Group. An emotional video accompanying the song features images of 434 firefighters who lost their lives. You can listen to the single, watch the video and preorder here.
Written by Sarah Joyce and Rob Shirakbari, Before The Planes is described as a song of love and hope. Every word and image is drawn from eyewitness testimony. Fragmented voices, radio calls, observations and courageous acts form a collective memory of the day, including an excerpt of Danny Boy, the traditional ballad commonly used to honour those who died at firefighters’ funerals and memorial services.
Rumer said: “I found myself looking at the world as it is now, at the conflict, division and instability that seems to have become embedded in our daily lives, and wondering when the trajectory began to change? When 9/11 happened, it seemed a line was drawn in the sand. It felt as though there was a world before September 11th and a world after.
“So I started listening to first hand accounts from survivors, witnesses and family members with a focus on the New York events. Over several months, I listened to and watched hundreds of hours of eyewitness testimony from that day and the days after. What struck me most was the heroism that was shown that day; the goodness of the people, the bravery of the firefighters, first responders and civilians who gave up their lives to save others.”
The song focuses on heroes such as Battalion One Chief Joseph Pfeiffer, the first NY Fire Department Battalion Chief on the scene, whose brother Kevin, also a firefighter, died in the North Tower. In the track you can hear a snippet of Joseph calling out for his brother on the radio with no reply. It also references the firefighters of Ladder 6, led by Jay Jonas, who stopped to help older injured secretary Josephine Harris as they were being told to evacuate the tower. By choosing to stay with her, they ended up in the only air pocket, Stairwell B, when the tower went down around them, and were later rescued.
Rumer said there are countless stories of heroism from during and after the event, as firefighters searched the debris for family members, friends and neighbours. Toxic dust from the debris was responsible for a further 400 firefighter deaths in the months and years after, with the count continuing. “The ultimate message of the song is that despite the terrorist atrocities we have faced and continue to face around the world, there are always heroes in our midst, and their acts of extraordinary bravery, kindness and love give us hope for a better world.”
In notes issued in August 2026, she called Before The Planes an impressionist piece centred on the firefighters who responded on the day and in the time that followed.
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