Who is SheraSeven; the lifestyle guru whose advice to young women is going viral on TikTok?

She doesn’t have a TikTok account, yet is one of the current biggest hashtags on the platform along with her catchphrase, “sprinkle sprinkle,” with a legion of followers sharing clips from her official YouTube channel offering practical advice for the young woman. But for some, SheraSeven has drawn comparisons to pick-up artists, with The Guardian regarding her as “the female Andrew Tate.”

Shera, real name Leticia Padua, has become the go-to regarding financial and lifestyle advice, particularly for those women over the age of 25 looking for love and money - as we all do. Her advice however falls into the realms of “gold digger” territory regarding her insights into modern dating and financial independence. 

Those pieces of advice have been clipped and shared onto social media, with #sparklesparkle the calling card for her new army of fans - with 20 billion views and counting. Some of the advice dispensed includes how twentysomething women should look for older, affluent (rich) partners and to concentrate on their beauty and self-worth.

Where the Andrew Tate comparison begins, however, is her advice on how to pick up these “sugar daddies”; her “strategic methods” include reverse psychology, to create connections without exposing true vulnerabilities and once a woman secures such a partnership, she should encourage her partner to financially support her. This, she tells her followers, is a means of empowering women within relationships, while dispelling traditional gender expectations.

But while aspirational influencers are nothing new to social media platforms, this different take on relationship advice and empowerment has not sat well with some. One of the more controversial takes comes from her refusal to offer people advice on “real relationships” that aren’t based on money because, in her view, all relationships are ultimately based on power.

The popularity of her mantras has seemed to resonate with a generation of women facing economic challenges, fostering reliance on parents and grappling with stagnant wages. The messages she offers seem to work well with the “quick fix” nature that social media platforms exude more and more each year.