Red Solo Cup by Toby Keith

Album: Clancy's Tavern (2011)

Charted: 15

License This Song

artistfacts

Songfacts®:

This drinking song was written by Brett and Jim Beavers with Brad and Brett Warren; Solo is a brand of disposable cups that are often filled with beer from a keg and found scattered about the next morning after the party. "I don't remember who played it for me the first time, but it was so stupid I just died laughing," recalled Keith. "What's great about this song is it does everybody the same way it did me: 'That's the stupidest song in the world and I can't get it out of my head.' I laugh every time I hear it. Sometimes it's good for the world to hear something like that."
When Keith decided to record the song he decided that he didn't want to make it his version of what the Beavers and Warren brothers wrote. Instead, he decided to make them part of it. He said: "We brought them in when we cut it, to play and sing background, so it really sounds like them."
Keith explained the song's meaning: "The song is basically a bunch of frat party people getting hammered, drinking out of a red Solo cup and all the stupid stuff they do. They actually praise the red Solo cup for all the important things and usages that it has. You're going to find it really stupid but you'll be singing it the next day when you wake up."
Keith explained to The Boot that he decided to cut this for Clancy's Tavern, as he "didn't have a bus song like 'Weed With Willie' or 'Get Out of Your Clothes or Get Out of My Car.'
How many celebrities can you name in the star-studded music video? If you recognized all of Larry Bird, Lance Burton, Eric Church, Roger Clemens, Jeff Dunham, Craig Ferguson, Sammy Hagar, Joe Nichols and Ted Nugent, we say reward yourself with a red cup filled with your favorite beverage!
The Beavers and Warren brothers never intended the song to be pitched to anyone to record, but Keith got to hear the tune after someone who worked for him played it.
"Red Solo Cup" was voted the worst country song that was a big hit in a 2019 poll of The Boot readers.
Fans raised their red solo cups to toast Toby Keith after he died on February 5, 2024 following a battle with stomach cancer. A very moving tribute took place at the CMT Awards on April 7 when cups were distributed to the audience and, with his family in attendance, collectively toasted to his memory. Brooks & Dunn, Sammy Hagar and Lainey Wilson each covered one of his songs.

Comments: 3

Deena Quick from Pomona CaI love Red Solo Cup. It makes me laugh and yes it’s kinda stupid but collage kids write it. If it comes on the radio I crank it up. It’s a fun song. Even Toby said he thought it was stupid he made fun. It’s a party song.
Michaela from Atkinson, NhI find this song totally idiotic and yet amazingly catchy and fun! I am a big Toby Keith fan, he's a great person and an awesome entertainer/performer (as I have seen him in concert recently). I wouldn't listen to this particular song on my own but if it were to come on the radio, I likely would not change the station.
Karen from Manchester, NhWorst tune ever, with the worst lyrics ever, supported by the worst video ever (celeb cameos do NOT make a great video). It has never made me laugh, or even smile. As soon as it comes on, I change the channel/station. Toby Keith has steadily declined in the past few years.

see more comments

More Songfacts:

Take Me to ChurchHozier

Hozier's "Take Me to Church" drew inspiration from the atheist writer Christopher Hitchens. He called it "a bit of a losing your religion song."

Good TimesChic

The disco song "Good Tmes" by Chic was a huge influence on early rap, providing the bassline for "Rapper's Delight."

We were all party rocking in 2011 with the global smash "Party Rock Anthem," but rap fans know the "Everyday I'm shufflin'" line is a take on "Everyday I'm hustlin'" from the 2006 Rick Ross track "Hustlin'."

Radar LoveGolden Earring

At the end of "Radar Love," the driver dies in a crash but maintains a psychic bond with the woman he was racing to see. The song's lyricist was inspired by stories of extrasensory perception (ESP).

Constant Cravingk.d. lang

"Constant Craving" by k.d. lang deals with principles of Buddhism, including the cycles of birth and death.

Put Your Records OnCorinne Bailey Rae

Corinne Bailey Rae's 2006 hit "Put Your Records On" borrows the opening line ("Three little birds sat on my window") from the Bob Marley song "Three Little Birds." Both songs have the same message: Don't worry, because every little thing's going to be alright.