WGRY-FM's roots can be traced back to as early as 1978, when a radio station in Grayling debuted at 100.1 FM with the call letters WQON, competing against separately-owned MOR/country music-formatted WGRY/1590 (now 1230). Both stations would compete against one another for ten years, until William S. Gannon purchased WGRY in 1988. In 1990, Gannon Broadcasting was granted Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approval to construct a new station licensed to Roscommon broadcasting at 101.1 on the FM dial. The Construction Permit originally bore the WLAI calls but never was on the air with that call sign. WGRY-FM made its debut on March 12 of that year at 6,000 watts, broadcasting out of the same studio, located in Grayling, as its sister station WGRY.