Toby Keith’s ‘Red Solo Cup’ Created a Big Problem for the Company

Toby Keith had a pretty simple answer when the company behind Solo cups told him they had a problem with his hit song “Red Solo Cup.”

During an archived interview with me from 2022 on Taste of Country Nights, Keith recalled the time the company contacted him because people were buying so many red Solo cups that the other colors weren’t selling… and they weren’t too happy.

“They told me one time, they said, ‘We got an issue.’ I said, ‘What?’ They said, ‘We’re only selling red ones.’ I said, ‘Quit making the other colors then,’” Keith told me.

That’s a pretty great response, and it’s hard to argue with his logic. If everybody wanted the red ones, why bother making the other colors?

red plastic bucket on gray sand

Toby Keith’s ‘Red Solo Cup’ Became a Party Anthem

Keith released “Red Solo Cup” in 2011, and the song quickly became one of the most recognizable party anthems in country music, and still is to this day.

Toby Keith – Clancy’s Tavern (Deluxe Edition)

The track appeared on his album Clancy’s Tavern and celebrated one of the simplest staples of a party: the red plastic cup.

It wasn’t a typical country song about heartbreak, small towns or life on the road. Instead, Keith turned an everyday item into a singalong that fans could enjoy with a cup in hand, and that they did and still do.

It also became one of the most memorable songs of his career, proving that a country hit didn’t always have to take itself too seriously.

Toby Keith Had a Simple Solution for Solo Cup

The best part of Keith’s story was the problem the company reportedly brought to him.

According to Keith, the company told him it was selling red Solo cups but wasn’t moving the other colors. His response was to stop making the other colors altogether.

It’s the kind of quick, funny answer that fit Keith’s personality. He didn’t need to come up with a complicated business plan. He just figured that if the song had made red cups the ones everybody wanted, the company should lean into it.

Toby Keith’s Death

Keith died on Feb. 5, 2024, at the age of 62, following a battle with stomach cancer. His music continues to bring people together, and “Red Solo Cup” remains one of those songs that can get a crowd singing along.

Read More: Jamey Johnson Reveals Toby Keith’s Spicy Golf Habit

And now, thanks to the story Keith shared with me on Taste of Country Nights, there’s another memorable part of the song’s history: the time Solo Cup told him, “We got an issue,” and he gave them an answer that was pure Keith, and essentially told them where to put it.