M-Net's Idols website has reported that Anke Pierangeli, the 20-year old songbird from Kimberley, has taken the Idols grand prize at the finale at the Hippodrome in Gauteng on Sunday night.
She beat Poeseletso Sejosingoe from Gugulethu.
Judge Gareth Cliff said Anke's first performance in the Idols 2003 contest - Sarah McLachlan's Angel - as his favourite of the first auditions.
Anke sang Unforgettable and Independent Love Song during the final show. She was a consistent performer who only took the hot seat once during the competition.
The announcement of the Idols winner came after a final show that included appearances by ten of the Top 12, performances from last year's Idols winner Heinz Winckler and two show-stoppers from Gareth Gates, the runner-up in the first Pop Idol competition.
The winner receives a recording contract with BMG Africa, the production skills of top international producer, Brian O' Shea, A&R responsibilities by Idols judge Dave Thompson, a personal management contract with Fuller Artiste Management Enterprises, headed by Mike Fuller, as well as the freedom of Gold Reef City for a year. Not forgetting a Renault Scenic RX4, worth R300 000!