Singer Stephanie Smith remembers always cheering for her brother when he played sports at State College Area High School. Now, she is simply amused by the irony of having him watch her perform on stage.

"He was embarrassed of me," Smith said playfully. "Now I'm the popular one."

The native will return to State College when the Winter Wonder Slam Tour invades the Bryce Jordan Center tonight.

Smith came to Houserville, Pa., from Tulsa, Okla., when her parents divorced in 1986; she was 6 months old. She lived with her grandfather Ken Hosterman, who was a Penn State soccer coach from 1953 to 1967. He passed away in April 2005.

Hosterman was a father figure to Smith, and she credits his love of singing as her inspiration.

"It was right around the time of his death that I was stepping into my own role," Smith said. "I felt like I was carrying on the torch."

Smith's mother, Karen Hosterman-Sabel, 52, currently a resident of West Lafayette, Ind., said Smith was "painfully shy" growing up.

"She was perfectly happy walking in her brother's shadow," Hosterman-Sabel said.

Smith's brother, Matt Smith, Class of 2006, said he first noticed how much talent she had when she performed a Diana Ross song at a high school talent show.

"For the next couple weeks, I had people coming up to me and saying 'Whoa, we didn't know your sister could sing like that,' " he said. "And I said, 'Whoa, I didn't either.' "

Hosterman-Sabel said Smith became "a big fish in a little pond" pretty quickly when she attended Greenville College in Illinois.

Smith performed at Greenville's AgapeFest and caught the eye of the Winter Wonder Slam Tour headliner TobyMac.

After TobyMac saw Smith perform at the festival, he put Smith on his label, Gotee Records, making her a touring artist.

Hosterman-Sabel said although she is happy for her daughter's career, she prays she doesn't make the same mistakes other artists in the public spotlight have.

"I told her 'I don't need you to be famous,' " she said. "This kind of career has all kinds of drawbacks and pitfalls. I told her I was proud of her and who she was."

Although she has performed in arenas like the BJC before, Smith said she is excited to return.

"Since I moved away, life has changed so much," Smith said. "It's where I grew up -- it's not where I live anymore."

Smith now travels more frequently, stopping to talk to people in various airports wearing Penn State clothing.

"I meet new friends in the airport all the time," she said. "We connect instantly. I really love Penn State."