COLUMBUS (WCMH) – It’s the number one gospel song in the country. Nia Allen wrote it, she sings it, and she’s from central Ohio.

Allen said she’s been singing the song for a long time. It’s been on her heart and on her mind, and now that song is on the radio.

She’s happy, and so is her dad.

Make a joyful noise. For Nia Allen, that’s all she knows.

“I’ve been singing this song a long time and it’s literally a song I’ve had to live out,” she said. “It’s called ‘Wait’ and so when it reaches this status, It’s kind of like, ‘Wow.’”

Wow, because that song is the number one gospel song on the Billboard charts. Not bad for a girl who grew up in central Ohio, and this “sanging” soul is a product of Columbus City Schools.

“I went to Indianola Elementary School,” she said. “It was close to OSU. I went to Monroe Middle School, where, at the time, my dad was the music teacher, and then I went to Northland High School.”

Allen’s father, Dr. Milton Ruffin, is still working with his daughter. The wrote the number one song together.

Blending some old-school, hand-clapping, foot-stomping gospel with the new way of performing gospel to bring more sheep to the flock.