EXCLUSIVE

Kesha is prepping for a "statement performance" at the Billboard Music Awards and Dr. Luke will be the prime focus ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to Kesha tell us the singer is gearing up for a marquee performance during the live May 22 show on ABC from Las Vegas. We're told she's planning to make direct references to her ongoing legal battle with Dr. Luke ... and might even include images of him.

She might have already given us a taste of what's to come after a not-so-subtle reference to the Sony producer when she covered Lady Gaga's "Til It Happens To You" last week.