She's pop music's comeback story of the year — perhaps even the decade.

And while she's in the midst of a very triumphant chapter, perhaps no single night of it was as sweet for Kesha Sebert than Wednesday, when she performed at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium.

“I’ve always wanted to play this venue, since I was a little girl,” she said from the stage.

“I know Bob Dylan has been on this stage, and that just kills me. I was listening to him backstage, getting ready for tonight. And I just want y’all to know how special this is for me.”

Kesha (as she's known to fans) was born in Los Angeles, but raised in the Nashville area. She became a global pop sensation in 2010, with chart-topping hits including "TiK ToK" and "We R Who We R."

A few short years later, she was in rehab for an eating disorder, and then entered a lengthy legal battle with her former producer, accusing "Dr. Luke" (Lukasz Gottwald) of sexual assault and harassment. Gottwald has denied the allegations.

In August, she returned with her first album in nearly five years, "Rainbow," which debuted at No. 1.

Wednesday's show was just the second date on her "Rainbow" tour, and she was met by an audience that couldn't have been more thrilled to see her back on stage.

Cheers rang out at full volume in that historic room for at least a full minute when she first appeared, kicking off the night with the funk anthem "Woman." That was the first of many songs from "Rainbow" that were greeted as warmly as her earliest hits. The extended ovations continued for several songs, and every time a fan hollered out "I love you!" from the pews, Kesha would hear it and respond in kind.

"This is the second night of our tour, and I have to thank you," she said early on. "I'm gonna take you back. About four years ago, I was sitting alone, very scared, on the floor of a rehab facility. I was getting help for an eating disorder. I wrote a song called 'Rainbow,' and in my wildest dreams, I thought, 'You know, maybe one day, I'll be playing the f___ing Ryman. Maybe one day, after telling this truth, and I'm gonna make a record I f___ing love.

"And this has all happened. And you guys sold this tour out. You guys made my record number one. And I don't know how to thank you, so I'm just gonna keep thanking you, all night, because I don't know what I did to deserve such beautiful, loyal, amazing fans."

If you didn't know this tour was just getting off the ground, it'd be near-impossible to tell. Kesha's current band is a crack team of performers, many of whom handle multiple roles. And she was right in step with them, hitting all the high notes that have wowed "Rainbow's" fans.

A country-inspired interlude (which included "Rainbow's" Johnny Cash nod "Hunt You Down," and a twangy take on "Timber," her hit with Pitbull) gave way to a special appearance by Kesha's mom, Pebe Sebert.

A successful Nashville songwriter, she co-penned the Dolly Parton hit "Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You" before Kesha was born. She also has several writing credits on "Rainbow." They shared the microphone for one of their collaborations, "Godzilla."

The show hit a new emotional peak with the set-closer, "Praying." The piano ballad was "Rainbow's" first single, and Kesha told her audience she had to fight hard for it to be that way.

She and her band returned for a three-song encore that included the tune that made her a star, 2009's "TiK ToK." You could feel the Ryman rattle from fans leaping out of their seats — particularly up front, where Kesha had urged those on the floor to disregard their seating assignment and huddle up by the stage.

They closed with yet another of "Rainbow's" cathartic song, the album opener "Bastards."

"The main thing I want to leave with every single person in here, is you are perfect, and you are beautiful just as you are," Kesha said beforehand. "And do not let those bastard (expetives) ever take your spirit!"