It was August 2, 1983. A new radio station, WHTZ, has hit the airwaves.

The disc jockey leading the charge? An out-of-towner by the name of Scott Shannon.

"You had WABC, WNBC, WPLJ, and here comes this punk from Florida and they didn't think it was gonna work," said Shannon. 

But it did work. And that rise to success is the subject of a new documentary, "From Worst to First: The True Story of Z100 New York."

"There's a New York-ness to Z100, and this film, that's authentic," said filmmaker Mitchell Stuart.

A combination of top 40 music, crazy phone calls, phone parodies, and DJ shenanigans helped Z100 rise.

Shannon also recruited the audience to help them beat the other stations, and a little creative branding didn't hurt either.

It became famous for its catch phrase, "serving the universe from the top of the Empire State Building.”

That famous phrase was not a lie, technically.

Z100's transmitter is at the top of Empire State Building, but its competitors also used that transmitter. At the time, Z100's office was actually in Secaucus.

Stars including Jon Bon Jovi, Joan Jett, Debbie Gibson, Gavin DeGraw, and Nile Rodgers are all featured in the documentary.

There's even a story about a then little-known artist named Madonna frequently stopping by the Secaucus studios, asking Z100 to play her music before she rose to superstardom. Later on, another pop star took a page from Madonna's book.

"With us it was Lady Gaga. She grew up listening to us on Z100 and then she was just like come on, play my music!" said Elvis Duran.

Duran now leads Z100's morning show.

"We're a part of a childhood of so many New Yorkers and what an honor, love it," he said.

“From Worst to First” is available on cable, on demand, and on digital platforms.