This station first received its FCCconstruction permit in 1950.[1] During construction, it was assigned the call sign KPOO, and then KRUZ, before settling on KSAY on January 5, 1957.[5] In 1958, KSAY signed on the air.[6] Originally the station was a daytimer, required to go off the air between sunset and sunrise. It was owned by the KSAY Broadcasting Company.
In 1974, KSAY was sold to Peninsula FM, a broadcast company headed by radio entrepreneur James Gabbert, which also owned FM station KIOI at the time of acquisition. Upon its closure, the station's call sign was changed to the current KIQI, and flipped to oldies. By 1980, it switched to a Spanish language format with Regional Mexican music.