wiki

Content usage permissions

osu! is centred around being able to freely make and share creations with one another. It is important to ensure that appropriate permissions have been acquired to use any other creator's work in new creations, and that all such work is properly attributed.

Without permission, uploaded beatmaps are at risk of being removed and their uploaders are at risk of being denied access to the submission system as per the osu! copyright policy. This means users should create beatmaps using assets that are any of the following:

  • Legally cleared for use in osu!
  • Permitted for use by their creator(s)
  • Copyright-free

Opt-in

For artists wishing to add or update their entry on this listing, please feel free to reach out to the osu! music licensing team at music@ppy.sh.

Please also consider contacting the team about negotiating licensing. See the osu! music licensing page for more information.

Audio

Notice: Posting or streaming gameplay on other sites may potentially be subject to different licensing requirements that need to be negotiated or understood. Please exercise due diligence when broadcasting gameplay to an audience.

osu! provides mappers a library of licensed songs via the Featured Artist program. Each song on the listing is free for use within osu! and has no risk of removal.

When looking for songs outside of osu!'s Featured Artist catalogue, check whether or not its creator has explicitly stated usage terms. This information can often be found in the descriptions sections of an artist's music release platforms (e.g. Bandcamp, SoundCloud, YouTube) or their personal website. If a song is licensed under a Creative Commons Licence or is available for non-commercial use, it is safe to create and submit a beatmap for it.

If the usage rights for a song are not clear, it is recommended to reach out to its artist for permission before use in a beatmap. Most artists have contact methods labelled on their music release platforms, personal websites, and social media.

This may feel like a large hurdle, but mappers have had a fairly high success rate and receive artists' approval just by taking the courage to ask before using content without permission. It may help to mention that osu! is a free no-ad game, or to link osu!'s licensing page to give them a better idea of how content is consumed.

While music is frequently copyright-restricted, sound effects used for custom hitsounds are more often freely available. For example, the Philharmonia orchestra provides free instrument sound samples and Freesound permits sound sample searches filtered by usage rights.

Artist permissions

This section details which artists are willing to allow use of their audio works in osu!, and under what conditions (where appropriate).

All tracks listed on any Featured Artist listing are approved for use in the creation of osu! beatmaps. Tracks from a Featured Artist that do not appear in their listing are not licensed, and additional permissions may be required to use them.

Allowed

Artist Status
*namirin
-45
1914
2ToneDisco
3R2 / DJ Mashiro
69 de 74
7_7
:Poin7less
A-One
A.SAKA
A?
AAAA
ABSOLUTE CASTAWAY
Abuse
Aether
Aethoro
Aethral
Æther Realm
Agressor Bunx
Aice room
Aiobahn 1
Aitsuki Nakuru
Aiyru
ALEPH
Alestorm
Alkome
Allegaeon
ALLMYFRIENDS
Amidst
Andora
Andromedik
Andy Gillion
Annabel
antiPLUR / Internet Death Machine
Aoi
Aquellex
aran
Archspire
Ardolf
ARForest
Ariabl'eyeS
Ashrount
Ata
Atavistia
Au5 1
Avizura
Beach Bunny
beignet
Ben Briggs
bill wurtz
Billain
BilliumMoto
BlackY
BLANKFIELD
Blind Guardian
BLOOD CODE
BLOOD STAIN CHILD
Blue Stahli
Boom Kitty
Bossfight
Boxplot
C-Show
Camellia
Carpool Tunnel
CHON
Chroma
Cinamoro
CircusP
City Girl
ColBreakz
Corsace
Cranky
Creo
Cres.
Crywolf
Culprate
cute girls doing cute things
cygnus
cYsmix
dark cat
Darkney
DGK
Dimrain47
Disasterpeace
Disko Warp
DJ Genki / Gram
DJ Raisei
Down
Dual Alter World
Dustvoxx
E0ri4
Ekcle
ELFENSJóN
Emille's Moonlight Serenade
EmoCosine
Empty Peperoncino
Ensou
EPICA
Erik McClure
Etherwood
Euchaeta
Extra Terra
Exyl
F-777
False Noise
FATE GEAR
Feint 1
Fellowship
fiend
Fleshgod Apocalypse
Fractal 1
Fractal Dreamers
FRASER EDWARDS
Fred V & Grafix
Frums
Fuki
garlagan
Genkaku Aria
Geoxor
Getty
ginkiha
glass beach
GLORYHAMMER
Good Kid
goreshit
Grant 1
Grynpyret
GYZE
Halv
Hamu
happy30
HARDCORE UTOPIA
Harumaki Gohan
Haywyre
HEAD PHONES PRESIDENT
Helblinde
High Tea Music
Hinkik
Hino Isuka
Hybrid Minds
Hyper Potions 1
HyuN
I love you Orchestra
IAHN
iFeature
II-L
Imperial Circus Dead Decadence
Imy
in love with a ghost
Inferi
Innocent Key
Irreversible Mechanism
James Landino
Joe Ford
JOYLESS
Junk
Kabocha
kaitendaentai
kakichoco
kanemiko
kanone
Kanpyohgo
Kardashev
KASHIWA Daisuke
katagiri
Kenneyon
Kikuo
KINEMA106
KIRA
kiraku
Kitazawa Kyouhei
Klayton / Celldweller
KNOWER
KOAN Sound
Kobaryo
Kola Kid
Kommisar
Kou!
Koven 1
Krimek
Kuba Oms
kuro
Kurokotei
Kurubukko
La prière
LandRoot
LeaF
LEAF XCEED Music Division
Lexurus
Liar-soft
Lifetheory
LilyPichu
Lime / Kankitsu
linear ring
Liquicity
litmus* / Ester
Loki / Thaehan
love solfege
LukHash
Lundy
luvlxckdown
LV.4
m108
Maduk
Mage
Magnetude
Mameyudoufu
Marmalade butcher
Masahiro "Godspeed" Aoki
Massive New Krew
Matduke
MDK
Mediks
meganeko
METAROOM
Michael Cera Palin
Mili
MIMI
Minstrel
miraie
MisoilePunch
MisomyL
Mitsuki / RINYA
Mitsukiyo
Mono.
Monstercat
MOtOLOiD
MuryokuP / Powerless
MUZZ 1
my sound life
MYLK
MYUKKE.
Nakanojojo
nanobii 1
Nashimoto Ui
Native Construct
Natsume Itsuki
Ne Obliviscaris
Neko Hacker
nekodex
Nekrogoblikon
Never Say Die
Nile
NILFRUITS
Nitro Fun
niu arx
NIWASHI
Noisestorm 1
Noisia
NOISZ
nora2r
Numtack05
nyankobrq
O2i3
OISHII
Omoi
onumi
orangentle / Yu_Asahina
Origami Angel
Our Stolen Theory
ovEnola
P4koo
Panda Eyes
PanPanPanic
passchooo
Pegboard Nerds 1
Phantom Sage
Plum
polysha
Ponchi
Pratanallis
PTB10
PUP
Rabbit House
Raimukun
Rameses B 1
Receptor
Redside
rejection
Release Hallucination
Rezonate 1
Ricky Montgomery
Rin / Function Phantom
RiraN
Risa Yuzuki
Rish
Rising Sun Traxx
Ritorikal
Rivers of Nihil
Riya
rN
Rohi
Rootkit 1
Ruby My Dear
Rusty K
S3RL
Sable Hills
SAMString
satella
Satyr
Se-U-Ra
seatrus
SEBii
SECONDWALL
seleP
Sennzai
Sephid
Seraph
Sewerslvt
Shadren
Shawn Wasabi
Silentroom
siqlo
siromaru
Sobrem
solfa
SOOOO
soowamisu
Sound piercer
Sound Souler
Stars Hollow
Station Earth / Blue Marble
Stonebank 1
Street
Supire
SWORD OF JUSTICE
Sylvir / sakuraburst
Symholic
T & Sugah
Tanchiky
Task Horizon
Tasty
technoplanet
Tedjimo yomigY
Teminite
Tenchio
tephe
Thank You Scientist
The Flashbulb
The Gentle Men
tieff
Tiny Waves
tokiwa
Tokyo Machine 1
Tokyo.MeltiMelt
Toromaru
Trial & Error
True North
tsunamix
Umeboshi Chazuke
UNDEAD CORPORATION
URBANGARDE
USAO
Vansire
Vektor
Venetian Snares
VINXIS
Virtual Self
Voicians
Vorso
Waterflame
Whispered
Wiklund
Will Stetson
WINTERHORDE
Wisp X
wotoha
Xanthochroid
xi
yaseta
Yokomin
Yooh
YUC'e
yuki.
yukitani
Yunosuke
YUZUKINGDOM
Zenpaku
Zomboy
ZxNX

Allowed, with exceptions

Artist Status Notes
a_hisa Contact before uploading. Can be reached via email or Bandcamp.
Akira Complex Do not use or upload tracks that are not available on the creator's Featured Artist listing.
HoneyComeBear Do not use or upload tracks that are not available on the creator's Featured Artist listing.
Jun Kuroda Do not use or upload tracks that are not available on the creator's Featured Artist listing.
Morimori Atsushi Do not use or upload tracks that are not available on the creator's Featured Artist listing.
Reku Mochizuki Do not use or upload tracks that are not available on the creator's Featured Artist listing.
Synthion Do not use or upload tracks that are not available on the creator's Featured Artist listing.
Yuyoyuppe / DJ'TEKINA//SOMETHING Tracks from or themed around Touhou should not be uploaded or used.
Zekk Do not use or upload tracks that are not available on the creator's Featured Artist listing.

Disallowed

Artist Status
40mP
ak+q
DJMax (Neowiz)
Draw the Emotional
Enter Shikari
EZFG
Hatsuki Yura
Igorrr
kamome sano
Kozato
NOMA

Visual

Visual assets include a beatmap's background, storyboard, and video and follow the same usage requirements as audio assets.

Many image hosting websites have search filters for Creative Commons licensing or non-commercial use. Some websites that mappers have frequently used to find their copyright-free backgrounds include:

All visual works should be properly attributed including appropriate links to their source. If a direct link cannot be used for whatever reason, another link that points to the visual artist's primary presence on their most active platform should be used instead.

In many cases, a visual artist will make it immediately apparent if they permit the use of their work elsewhere. If it is unclear whether a visual artist allows their work to be used on other platforms, none should be used until appropriate usage conditions can be confirmed with them individually.

If a musician has explicitly granted permission to use their song, its album artwork or any other official artwork for the artist may likely also be viable for use in a beatmap. Again however, ask for permission if this is not clear.

Gameplay

When submitting a beatmap, users should have permission for gameplay-related assets such as guest difficulties or charts from other rhythm games.

We do not condone submissions featuring gameplay (hit objects) matching those of other games, as this is not respectful to the rhythm game community.

Notes

  1. This artist is licensed in cooperation with Monstercat, and users may be able to obtain external media usage rights via a Monstercat Gold subscription. Please consult their site for specific details on this licence.