Rollercoaster is the official debut album of pop rock-dance artist Jim Verraros. It was released by independent label Koch Records on April 26, 2005. Several of the album's songs had been featured on a previous release by Verraros, titled Unsaid and Understood, which had acted as a demo album. Unsaid and Understood had been self-released in 2003, a year after Verraros placed ninth on American Idol's first season, and had drawn the attention of Koch Records, which proceeded to sign Verraros. Gabe Lopez produced Unsaid and Understood as well as Rollercoaster. He also provided backing vocals and played several instruments on both albums. Among Rollercoaster's other background vocalists is Angela Peel, who made it to the semi-finals on American Idol, during the same season as Verraros.
Verraros had publicly come out as gay the year before releasing Unsaid and Understood and was the only openly gay finalist from American Idol at the time of Rollercoaster's release. He performed many of the songs on Rollercoaster at gay clubs and at pride events. All of the songs on the album avoid using pronouns, and the album was noted for including lyrics that allude to both gay bashing and gay sex. Verraros sought to create a more sexually charged album than those released by other American Idol finalists up to that point. The music of George Michael served as the album's primary influence, while Green Day inspired some of the album's rock elements.
"You Turn It On" was released as Rollercoaster's first single and peaked at number twenty-one on the Billboard Dance Club Play Chart. "You're Getting Crazy (Estas Enloqueciendo)" was released in October 2005 as the album's second single. Both songs received multiple remixes. Prior to Rollercoaster's release, songs from Unsaid and Understood topped the Rock and Pop charts on Mp3.com.
Lopez received writing credits for all eleven tracks on Rollercoaster. Verraros co-wrote seven of the album's songs, and Peel co-wrote four of them. Peel's credits include co-writing both of the album's singles.
Reviews of Rollercoaster were generally positive, both in mainstream and LGBT-interest publications. Critics complimented the album's musical influences and gay-oriented themes.
Background
After placing ninth on American Idol's first season, Jim Verraros moved to Los Angeles, where he was cast in the LGBT independent comedy film Eating Out. Around the same time, he connected with Gabe Lopez, a singer-songwriter and music producer based in that area. Lopez had heard American Idol: Greatest Moments, a compilation album that Verraros had been featured on, and wanted to begin a collaboration. The two of them worked out of Lopez's home studio. A demo album resulted, titled Unsaid and Understood, which Verraros and Lopez self-released in 2003.
As the first, and at that point, only American Idol finalist to be out publicly, Verraros had already been the recipient of significant media attention from the LGBT press; Out magazine had named him as one of "2002's Most Intriguing People". When Unsaid and Understood was released, The Advocate's Adam B. Vary named it as one of his favorite new indie albums in the LGBT music scene. Individual songs from Unsaid and Understood topped mp3.com's Rock and Pop charts, and one of the album's songs, "I Want You", was featured on Bi the People, a 2003 compilation album of "bisexual artists and friends", which was released to raise money for the Bisexual Foundation. Unsaid and Understood won the 2004 Out Music Award for Outstanding New Recording – Debut Male and was supported through a tour of gay clubs.
Despite the traction that Verraros was gaining within the LGBT community – the Chicago Sun-Times called him a "gay icon" in 2004 – he was unable to convince any major labels, either in the United States or in the United Kingdom, to release Unsaid and Understood. Struggling financially, Verraros continued working at a tanning salon, where he had found employment shortly after moving to LA. Over the summer of 2004, he learned that Koch Records, an indie label based out of New York, was preparing a compilation album of music by American Idol finalists. Koch Records wanted to know whether Verraros had anything to contribute to the planned album, and Verraros sent in a demo tape. He received a record deal within a week.
Unsaid and Understood was then retooled as Rollercoaster. Several of the same songs are featured on both albums, although Rollercoaster also features new material.