"I Gotcha' Back" is a song by American rapper and Wu-Tang Clan member GZA. It was originally released as a single in August 1994 as part of the soundtrack to the film Fresh and later included on his second studio album Liquid Swords with the apostrophe dropped from the title.
Background and composition GZA contributed "I Gotcha' Back" to the soundtrack of the 1994 crime drama Fresh, which also included a remix of the Wu-Tang Clan song "Can It Be All So Simple" as well as the debut single from fellow Clan member Raekwon, "Heaven & Hell". Like "Heaven & Hell" for Raekwon, "I Gotcha' Back" would end up serving as the first single from GZA's 1995 album, Liquid Swords. In a 2014 interview with Wax Poetics, GZA explained the origin of the song:
"I Gotcha' Back" "stood as an underground staple a year before Liquid Swords was released", according to XXL magazine.
Music video The video for "I Gotcha' Back" was directed by GZA himself. It stars two of GZA's nephews walking around New York City who both later end up incarcerated as of 2014, leading to GZA saying the song had developed a "sad irony" for him. Steve "Flash" Juon of Rapreviews.com ranked "I Gotcha' Back" as the 2nd best GZA video in his 2022 ranking.
Reception "I Gotcha' Back" has received positive reception from critics over the years. B.J. Steiner of XXL magazine referred to the song as an "[i]ntense and gritty epic", while Stereo Williams of Okayplayer said it "recaptures the knockaround energy of Wu's classic 'Protect Ya Neck". Adult Swim's adult animated sitcom The Boondocks made reference to the track in the season one episode "A Date with the Health Inspector".
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