Briana Reed, from St. Petersburg, FL, began her dance training at The Academy of Ballet Arts and continued at The Pinellas County Center for the Arts at Gibbs High School, studying ballet, pointe, Martha Graham technique, and West African dance. She received a full scholarship to The Juilliard School, where she studied ballet, Alexander technique, and modern dance techniques including Taylor, Graham, and Limón.

After graduating from Juilliard, she joined Ailey II and later became a principal dancer with The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, where she performed for sixteen years. She has danced in works by Alvin Ailey, Talley Beatty, Ulysses Dove, Lester Horton, and Hans Van Manen, among others.

In 2010, Reed performed at The White House in tribute to Judith Jamison. She is a two-time recipient of the Key to the City of St. Petersburg, FL, and an ABT Affiliate Teacher with the ABT National Training Curriculum, earning the distinction of ABT Teaching Fellow.

Reed has performed on Good Morning America, Ellen, and NETFLIX's The Get Down. She choreographed and starred in the short film The Miracle Twerker and worked on Tonya Pinkins' Womyn Working It Out at The Tank NYC.