WASHINGTON — From across the restaurant, a woman spots her: Y'Anna Crawley, recently crowned winner of BET's "Sunday Best" gospel talent show.

"Excuse, me, I don't mean to bother you," the woman says, "but I just want to tell you." The woman pauses to gather her emotions: "You have a beautiful voice. Beautiful voice. I was rooting for you."

At the car dealership down the road, Crawley has just picked out the fully loaded Lincoln MKS she won on the show. A couple interrupts her: "You are that girl on BET!" the woman says. "Baby, I love your voice."

And Crawley, a Washington native who once sang in go-go clubs to make a living, feels once again like she about to cry.

This could be the very beginning of stardom. Or not. But she hopes this is it — the moment just before all the red carpets. Before the entourage, the hangers-on, the big houses, before the album is finished. Before the duets. Before the record deals. Before the change.

On May 10, Crawley beat out 20 contestants (winnowed from 5,000 nationwide) to win the second season of "Sunday Best." Her rendition of "Grandma's Hands" midway through the 10-week competition stunned the three judges, Grammy-award winning gospel superstars BeBe Winans, and Tina and Erica Campbell, the sisters who make up the gospel group Mary Mary. The show was hosted by Grammy Award winner Kirk Franklin.

"When she sang 'Grandma's Hands,' she won the competition," Winans says. "She made you believe what she sang. ... You have to be good to do that."

More than 1.7 million people watched the gospel showdown between Crawley and another huge gospel talent, Jessica Reedy. In addition to the car, Crawley won a contract for an album to be produced by BET. She's working on it now, making trips out to Los Angeles.

"Y'Anna has been singing this way since elementary school," says her friend John Hart.

Crawley smiles and tries to quell the giddiness rising up within. "It's still surreal for me," Crawley says. "People doubted me. I'm 32 with two kids. I thought the industry would say, 'She's too old. Washed up.' But to go on 'Sunday Best' and win speaks to the truth God keeps promises. To know everything I dreamed about is coming true. Everything I've gone through from 12 up, singing background vocals, has prepared me for this moment."