She made guest appearances on Murder, She Wrote and The X-Files across the 1990s, before being cast in a main role of the sitcom Becker (1998–2004).

Smith hosted season one of the VH1 acting competition Scream Queens (2008) and played Jennifer Goodson in Anger Management (2012–2014).

[1][2] She is the second child of Patricia Ann (née Smoak), an oncology nurse, and James H. Smith, a financial planner and former US Air Force pilot.

[2] At age 15, Smith won her first stage role in the Los Angeles play, To Gillian on Her 37th Birthday where co-star Richard Dreyfuss noticed in rehearsals her potential and suggested she be given a leading part.

[10] That same year, she co-starred with Jennie Garth and Barbara Eden in the short-lived TV series Brand New Life.

She took a three-year break from acting in the early 1990s, primarily because she had outgrown teenage roles and had a hard time finding work.

[12] Smith made a guest appearance in the 1994 The X-Files episode "Firewalker", playing Jessie O'Neil.

A small part, opposite Tobin Bell, she filmed her scene within one day and while battling the flu.

In an interview with Radio Free in October 2005, she stated, "between being a mom, and working, and growing another baby, I have not had time to give attention to music for a while.

[29] Smith was the host and one of three mentors on the VH1 reality television series, Scream Queens, which aired from October 2008 to December 2008.

Smith appeared in the series premiere of Law & Order: Los Angeles titled, "Hollywood", on September 29, 2010.

[33] From 2012 to 2014, Smith starred as Jennifer Goodson, the ex-wife of Charlie Sheen's character in the TV series Anger Management.

[34] She provided vocals on a cover of Steve Miller Band's "Abracadabra" by Eagles of Death Metal after Jesse Hughes overheard her singing the song in a studio bathroom.