She was born in Brooklyn, New York to a Spanish/Puerto Rican mother and a Spanish/Italian father. She was raised in Corona, California by her musician father from the age of five. When she was 16, she moved to Los Angeles and quickly landed her first series,
Boogies Diner (1994). She received a scholarship to attend the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and graduated from the three-year conservatory school, where she studied classical theater, film, and television acting.