"Cups" is a version of the 1931 Carter Family song "When I'm Gone", usually performed a cappella with a cup used to provide percussion, as in the cup game. It was first performed this way in a YouTube video by Lulu and The Lampshades in 2009 (under the title "You're Gonna Miss Me"). Composition of the song is credited to A. P. Carter and Luisa Gerstein of Lulu and the Lampshades.

The song became popular after it was covered by Anna Kendrick in the 2012 film Pitch Perfect. That version also became the official theme song of the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament.

The original song "When I'm Gone" was written by A. P. Carter, then recorded in 1931 by the Carter Family (not to be confused with their 1928 song "Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone?"). The song was reworked in 1937 by J. E. Mainer. Over the years it has been recorded by many people including Mainer's Mountaineers and Charlie Monroe. It can also be heard in the film Dan in Real Life.

Lulu and the Lampshades were the first to perform the song using the cup game for percussion. Their video went viral after a Reddit posting, prompting dozens of other budding musicians to record cover versions of the song using the Cup Clap technique. It was soon dubbed The Cup Song.

Though the song had been popular online for years, mainstream success came when it was incorporated into the film Pitch Perfect in 2012. In the film it is performed by the main character, Beca Mitchell (Anna Kendrick) during an audition for a college a cappella group. Unlike the soundtrack version, the single version of the song was re-produced with additional instrumentation (notably the banjo) by American Music Award-winning music producer Ali Dee Theodore, Jordan Yaeger and Harvey Mason, Jr.. The single version was extended by an additional minute. Prior to the single's release, covers of the song as well as tutorials on how to do the song (using cups) went viral. Kendrick has stated that she learned the song and its cup percussion from watching and doing many times on Reddit prior to being cast in Pitch Perfect, and it was therefore written into the film.

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