Coach B Is All Heart, All Pride, All In

Brian “B” Bradley is passionate about two things: tennis and entertaining. 

Full-time tennis “Coach B” by day, full-time social media content creator for @coachbtv on social media any other chance he gets.

“You could say I’m a ‘lifer’,” said the New York native who now resides in Los Angeles, where he teaches group and private lessons for CityTennis in Culver City. “My mom played tennis up until a couple of weeks before giving birth to me, and both my parents taught me to play when I was really young.”

B says he always felt comfortable on the court and in a theater. 

“I studied drama growing up and I’m an entertainer through-and-through,” he said, relaying claim-to-fame experiences like cameos on Saturday Night Live. “The Donatella Versace Halloween skit with Maya Rudolph … I was one of the trick-or-treaters and I was so excited because I actually had a speaking line and got to meet Halle Berry!”  

A natural at leading with humor and joy, B was able to juggle his acting and tennis interests as he grew up, but says he became “obsessed” with professional tennis in his early teens.

“I wasn’t necessarily a superstar on the court when it came to winning, but by the age of 14, I started taking competition very seriously. Tennis was something I excelled at, which gave me confidence. Growing up as a little gay kid, I didn’t always have that. But on the court, I didn’t feel stuck in the background. I could shine!”

B continued to work on his acting and went on to play tennis for Catholic University, a Division III school in the heart of Washington, D.C. 

“I was the captain of the team my senior year and we made it to the NCAA Nationals, the only time the college had ever made it to the NCAAs,” B explained. “It was a great four years. I was lucky because I could balance both. During the day, it was all tennis. Then I’d get dinner. And the evenings were for performing.”

After graduating from college, B secured a job as a tennis coach and eventually made his way to Los Angeles.

“Oh, ya … California dreamin’, baby!” B laughs. “I always knew I wanted to move to the West Coast. My tummy just feels right up in here! So after COVID, I moved to the Golden State.”

Coach B now teaches mostly adults, six to seven hours a day, both privately and in group lessons for CityTennis. Sometimes he has up to 100 players a week, B estimates, with Live Ball classes being one of his specialties.

“My favorite part about teaching tennis is when people come in and I can tell they are not comfortable with starting something new. But I ask them questions. I get them out on the court, having fun and building confidence,” explained B. “And when they leave smiling, knowing they can do this, it’s so rewarding!”

First-time students of Coach B immediately notice a difference when they step on the court with him. 

“If you’ve ever taken a lesson from B, you know what contagious, positive energy he brings wherever he goes,” said Los Angeles resident Jessie Lance. “When B first came to LA, I met him at a local tennis facility in Plummer Park in West Hollywood. He taught a live-ball class that I went to. It was so fun, I instantly thought ‘I love this guy!’ and my expectations for every Live all class after that were sky high.”

Lance and his friend had just started playing tennis after picking up two racquets on a whim in Walmart. The next week, Lance went back to the Live Ball lesson, but Coach B wasn’t there and it was “just … well … blah,” Lance laughs. “I soon realized the mood and vibe B brings are unparalleled, and I wanted to follow him anywhere. 

“I don’t think anybody can live up to the wonderfulness that is Coach B,” Lance added. “He is so supportive and inclusive. Everyone loves him because they feel good around him. He lifts them up, and people are at a high whenever he is around.”

If you follow Coach B on any social media platform, you will see how the avid content creator brings so much fun and humor to his craft.

“Tennis is about happiness and escape,” B says. “At first, I wanted to act because I wanted to be or ‘act’ like someone else. Now I want to ‘act’ like myself and use my talents to create my content. I know how to structure a video, and I love making my own productions. All things I learned how to do through my schooling.”

“If you like authentic commentary, joyful interviews, dancing, good music, and a little sass, you will definitely want to keep up with Coach BTV,” said a faithful Instagram follower. 

“Everyone should have a Brian in their life,” said another one of Coach B’s Los Angeles students, Anne Rudnick. “I’ve been playing tennis my whole life, but when I met him, everything was so fun! I mean, I’ve probably had 10,000 lessons, but hitting with B, it’s a nonstop giggle-fest! 

B and Rudnick have been playing together every Thursday morning for the past two years. 

“Now my wife and my best friend have just taken up tennis, so every Thursday, I get to play with three of them,” Rudnick said. “Life couldn’t get any better than that!”

When he isn’t teaching, B is competing globally, making numerous appearances on the Gay and Lesbian Tennis Alliance (GLTA) circuit. GLTA Tournaments are held throughout the year worldwide and B has played in Dubai and Wimbledon, to name a few stops. He’s won 12 titles on the GLTA tour and has attended all four Grand Slam tournaments. 

B’s also met and interviewed a barrage of celebrities, although he will always be partial to his favorites, Venus Williams and James Blake.

“I do a lot of my traveling around tennis,” he explained. “In 2019, I had the opportunity to play at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. I was on the grandstand court with tears literally streaming down my face. It was a dream come true! It was a drug!”

“I have never met any other coach who has done so much for their tennis community,” said Lance. “Even when he moved to another location to teach, I wanted to stay friends with him and we still meet up for happy hour once in a while. 

“He’s just an incredible human being!”