I had been back to NY / NJ (my home) every year since 9/11 for songs healing and advocacy -my DIY version of Music Therapy. By early 2005, I was in the midst of arranging an orchestral piece around one of my songs for the NBC 9/11, 8-part series. I had discussed the project with Graham Yost ( Speed, Boomtown, Band of Brothers) in Santa Barbara as he was writing / producing the project along with Ron Howard and Brian Grazer from Imagine. I learned that this story would be based on and related to the work of the 9/11 Commission. I was scheduled to perform for a WTC Family event at Ground Zero a few weeks later and so I met Graham there. We gathered with Family Members and Survivors at a nearby coffee shop to talk first-hand about their experiences. His driver / escort for the day was William Rodriguez (last person out, Janitor at WTC). The stories were (are) gut wrenching, heart breaking and raw. When William began to tell his story, I was immediately shocked, sickened and gradually the anger set in. He explained that he and his co-workers had heard and felt explosions in the basement of the North Tower - before any plane struck the building. I can still see the expressions on every face while he talked that morning.
I forget the exact number of days - maybe a week or two after we met in New York, Graham wrote a note to inform me that the project was canceled. He never elaborated on the particulars and NBC would later claim the decision was a financial one. I dialed Graham for more information and he never returned my call or email. A week later, a staffer told me that NBC would not allow Graham the required latitude to tell the story truthfully (the way he had heard it from William and the Families during that visit?). ABC had a 9/11 mini-series coming out around the same time and history will judge the accuracy portrayed in that piece.William Rodriguez had testified under oath before the 9/11 Commission (closed door - like Bush and Cheney except for the oath) and scores of other witnesses had testified about hearing and feeling explosions throughout both buildings. This information and the WTC 7 (free-fall) collapse information never made it to the official 9/11 Commission report or any other report.
At the same time this was happening, my music career was gaining solid momentum; I was cozying up to the Grammy crowd and making a few nickels along the way. This new WTC knowledge suddenly slammed a giant a fork in my road. Sappy love songs and pop tunes paid much more in writing / publishing nickels than any political, downright conspiratorial lyrics. I made my choice and I stand by that decision today. I continue to arrange and produce and I continue to write /publish. I have been visited by GOV at my home / questioned in my home and I have been placed on a few lists over the years. I have lost a few friends yet I made many more. I remain committed to righting a handful of these blatant wrongs against humanity including the attainment of 9/11 Truth and Justice. The evidence is compelling and irrefutable that Saudi Arabia financed and choreographed the 9/11 attacks. The evidence is clear that GOV played some role in 9/11 (beyond my capacity to understand or investigate) and quite simply, We Were All Lied To. Two additional facts are equally disturbing 1. American politicians covered up and continue to cover up the true story while protecting the Saudi crown. 2. The American public has not united completely (yet) in this mission to demand truth and justice.
I will be in New York and New Jersey again next week to honor those we lost and the Families that have endured. I always leave my opinions at home this time of year but you can expect to hear from me again on 9/12.
Thank you for considering my perspective. Tom Chelston 9/5/16
