In a conversation with The Lovie Awards, Stephanie Cheape, Scottish presenter, creator, and musician, looks back on a career shaped by instinct, resilience, and a willingness to go her own way. From veterinary practice to viral TikTok sensation, her story is one of redirection, not failure. Read on as she reflects on creative resilience, building an audience through authenticity, and why failure is often just a different route forward.

Before the audience, before the BBC work — you were juggling veterinary work and pursuing music. What did that chapter feel like from the inside?

It felt a lot like failure, honestly. I was constantly pushing against the grain, self-funding everything, my education, my rent, whilst working so hard for probably a 10% reward of that creativity. But I couldn’t let go of it because I didn’t really know what life was without that little bit of happiness. I knew that music was my piece, and I just thought I’m going to be like a dog with a bone and hold on to it. Looking back, I almost wish I’d enjoyed it more. You’re not able to enjoy it when you’re in it.

You were told you’d never get a record deal without 10,000 followers. How did that moment change things for you?

Every time I got so far, a bigger hurdle was put in front of me. We’d ticked every box, sold out King Tuts, sold out SWG3, and still they said no. Then lockdown hit, the tours got cancelled, and one day I was so frustrated I made a tongue-in-cheek TikTok about National Kiss a Ginger Day. Within 24 hours it had over a million views. I went back to my management with the numbers and they still didn’t know what to do with me. So I thought: no one is going to work harder for my dream than me. We parted ways and I just locked in on what I was growing.

You’ve talked about the clash between the music industry’s “be mysterious” persona and what social media actually rewards. How did you navigate that?

In music, it’s cool to be mysterious, to be a character. Social media doesn’t work in the same way. It’s largely personality-based storytelling. I was trained to be the artist, not the presenter. But the more I became goofy me and the more honest I was about my true reactions, the less it made sense to be anyone else. I think being cool is one of the biggest curses on the creative mind. What you’re doing is holding yourself to someone else’s standard, and that is so limiting.

Scotland isn’t just a backdrop in your content — it feels like a character in its own right. What is it about the country that continues to inspire you?

I grew up in the Glens, immersed in nature, and I’ve always had this deep patriotic connection to Scotland. I never thought of it as part of my channel, but the internet almost decided that. People had ancestors here, they’d saved for years to visit, and I realised I could bring Scotland to them. Be that friend they could FaceTime, showing them the country in real time. And there is so much negative media out there right now. I intentionally wanted to create a channel that was a safe space from all of that. That still remains the core of what I do.

You’ve used your platform to advocate for animal welfare and the veterinary industry. Where does that drive come from?

I couldn’t afford the formal education, so I went straight into working at a practice. The head vet, Tim, took me completely under his wing and it was his kindness that created that opportunity for me. I just wanted to pass that on. The veterinary industry has the highest rate of suicide of any vocation, and my platform can provide a voice that they don’t always have. When my reach was around 20 million on Instagram, I reached out to an animal charity and ran a full campaign to get some of their older dogs rehomed. Giving back matters to me because the people who invested in me deserve it.

What excites you most about the next chapter?

Being able to say no is a really great thing, and I’ve learned that. We’re planning to expand into the States and create a new level of connection to Scotland for people beyond the current scope. The privilege of being able to create honestly and openly, without hesitation or suppression of any kind, is everything. The sky is the limit with it, really.

Finally, your Lovie Letter — what do you wish you’d known before starting your career in content creation?

I wish I’d known sooner that failure is not a closed door. It’s just a redirection to something else. Music wasn’t what worked out for me, but it led me somewhere I could still be passionate about it and be myself in the most authentic way. Your path isn’t defined by your experiences or your environment. It is quite literally your mindset. Figure out when your best ideas occur and what environment you’re in when they come. Then figure out how to protect that. The rest will follow.

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