Rihanna is back, taking the Super Bowl by storm and reminding everybody what they've been missing for 6-plus years ... and, according to some, she might've even just made a BIG announcement.

The singer/fashion mogul hit the stage Sunday after the 2nd quarter of the game came to a close -- and right from the jump, you could tell this was going to be something else ... with RiRi making a grand entrance to kick off an epic 13-minute set chock-full of hits.

Rihanna's show featured her and her dancers on multiple elevated platforms, which she gradually came down from to continue the show. Of course, she touched on a ton of classics of hers ... singing everything from "Work" and "Bitch Better Have My Money" to "Rude Boy" and "Diamonds" -- and just about every other fan fave we all wanted to hear in between.

Of course, the one thing almost everyone noticed immediately ... Rihanna looked to possibly be pregnant -- and she even seemed to acknowledge she may be, rubbing her belly. No official word yet ... but all signs point to her potentially having another bun in the oven.

By the end of it all, Rihanna had just about everybody at State Farm Arena on their feet ... and the place was roaring when she took her final bow. Indeed, it was awesome.

This marks the first time Rihanna has performed live since 2018 -- when she hit the Grammys alongside DJ Khaled. She hasn't really picked up a mic since then though, and the anticipation to see her in her musical element again has been at an all-time high.

Of course, she also hasn't released a new album in like 7 years ... but, she has put out new music -- namely, a track for the new 'Black Panther' movie that proved she's still got it.

RiRi obviously put a lot of work into this ... she said she had gone through dozens of set list variations in the build-up to Sunday -- noting it was tough deciding which songs she wanted to include to do justice to her huge catalog. Safe to say, she chose wisely ... pulling it off.

Great show, and hopefully a sign of more to come for her. We know she's been hitting recording studios of late -- and with her going out on a such high like this, ya kinda gotta follow it up with even more stuff.

Granted, if she is indeed pregnant ... she may be on a hiatus yet again. Remember, she just gave birth this past May -- and while she was out and about a lot, she was also on mom duty.