Solo Cup Company an Iconic Chicago Institution

Chicago - A company that got its start on the South Side recently had one of their products immortalized by one of today's top country superstars, and Solo Cup says they love it.

It's the stupidest song I ever heard in my life, Toby Keith said, but it's so stupid it's good.

It's certainly struck a chord. Keith’s tribute to the ubiquitous Red Solo Cup, a staple at parties from Kennebunkport to Kankakee, rocketed to 14 on Billboard's Country music chart And the music video has been viewed nearly 9 million times on YouTube.

Solo Cup didn’t get a warning, but they don’t mind.

"We had no idea. But when we did see it we were very excited. We thought it was great," CEO Bob Korzenski said.

Korzenski said he hasn't heard from Toby Keith or his representatives, but said he's a big fan.

"It tells the story of the Solo brand in a way that associates well with our brand, where we simplify life and we have fun with our products. Having the singer of the decade choose the Solo Cup song in a way that represents that brand was powerful for us." Korzenski said.

Talk about mass marketing; last month the cast of Glee did their own rendition of Keith’s hit song. It's the sort of unsolicited marketing bonanza that just can't be quantified.

To think it all coincides with the firm's 75th anniversary. Solo Cup started on the South Side in 1936. Today, it's a $1.6 billion global company.

More than 1,700 hundred people work at their Chicago facility, and the red Solo cup phenomenon has done wonders for the morale of the workers, not just on the South Side, but all over the country.

"I think it's pretty cool, if it helps us out and gives us a little publicity and lets them know we're here," Sharon Pawlik said.

"They see me coming from work and they ask me, where you work at? I say ‘Solo Cup Company,’ and they say, ‘Oh, they got that red cup song,’” Barry Burrell said.