All rules for Albums

Include sources for non-obvious additions or changes. Edits by verified artists are considered authoritative information and do not need to be further sourced.

(Applies to all entries)

Do not add incorrect information.

(Applies to all entries)

Do not remove information in a way that’s not in line with the content removal guidelines.

Clearly incorrect information and out-of-scope entries can usually be removed, however it is typically best to make an entry report first.

(Applies to all entries)

Do not create duplicate entries.

”Duplicate” artist entries are allowed for separate artist personas.

(Applies to all entries)

Do not duplicate information between fields or different entries.

Some data duplication is allowed if there are significant upsides in usability.

(Applies to all entries)

Use the correct entry fields when adding information. For example, do not put lyrics in the entry description.

(Applies to all entries)

All entries require a name.

If all the primary names are whitespace, add the Untitled tag.

(Applies to all entries)

Missing names should not to be copied from the other two fields.

(Applies to all entries)

Demo and work in progress (WIP) songs/albums should not be added, unless:

• The song is part of a valid album entry
• The song is a voicebank demo

Teasers that are different from the actual songs that they promote are allowed (example).

(Applies to all song & album entries)

Some websites have a separate URL for pages meant to be viewed on mobile:

• https://m.youtube.com
• https://sp.nicovideo.jp/

Always prefer adding the desktop version of the link.

(Applies to all entries)

Direct download links (on any field) to media files (such as .mp3 or .flac) and links to file-hosting services (such as Google Drive or Dropbox) are not allowed, even if they’re legal. If the content is officially distributed, link the artist’s page (e.g., on Piapro or a blog) instead.

File sharing website links are only allowed if the website supports user profile pages, and the user (uploader) page is directly navigable from the download link page (https://piapro.jp/ links for example). In other cases the download link location should be mentioned in the entry description instead.

(Applies to all entries)

Do not add email links.

(Applies to all entries)

When adding external links, remove extraneous URL elements (usually after ? or &). More on #1765.

(Applies to all entries)

Use the correct link category.

Link categories are available for the main entry types (songs, albums and artists).

• Official = Links to content that the artist can directly control.
• Commercial = Official links that include commercial features (such as album/song purchase).
• Reference = Unofficial reference, such as wiki article.
• Other = Other unofficial and useful links that do not directly reference the entry.

(Applies to all song & album & artist entries)

Adding tag votes to objective tags is redundant, unless there is a need to highlight the tag.

(Applies to all entries)

Do not add machine translated/romanized titles or lyrics.

Official translations are accepted in any case.

(Applies to all entries)

Translations should be correct. Do not attempt to translate if you do not know the language well enough.

Official translations are accepted in any case.

(Applies to all entries)

Separate all words and particles with spaces when romanizing.

(Applies to all entries)

For Pinyin, separate each character with a space when romanizing.

Special names and proper nouns are kept together.

(Applies to all entries)

Capitalize all words that are NOT single kana particles (は、が、を、etc).

• E.g. 歌に形はないけれど would be romanized as ‘Uta ni Katachi wa Nai Keredo’.

(Applies to all entries)

Do not use macrons for long vowels.

• こおり is romanized as ‘koori’, not ‘kōri’.

(Applies to all entries)

If ん is followed by a vowel (including や・ゆ・よ), romanize it as n’.

• E.g. してやんよ would be romanized as “Shiteyan’yo’“.

(Applies to all entries)

は (ha) is romanized as ‘wa’ if it is used after a noun as a topic marker.

• E.g. 恋は戦争 would be romanized as ‘Koi wa Sensou’, the は is not part of a word and functions as a particle.

(Applies to all entries)

づ is romanized as ‘dzu’.

(Applies to all entries)

を (wo) is romanized as ‘o’ if it is used after a noun as a direct object particle.

• E.g. 地球最後の告白を would be romanized as ‘Chikyuu Saigo no Kokuhaku o’.

(Applies to all entries)

へ (he) is romanized as ‘e’ if it is used after the name of a place to indicate direction as a particle.

• E.g. 駆ける、星空の彼方へ would be romanized as ‘Kakeru, Hoshizora no Kanata e’, the へ is not part of a word and functions as a particle.

(Applies to all entries)

Use the same order as the original Japanese name for romanizations.

Usually this is “Lastname Firstname”.

(Applies to all entries)

Loanwords are romanized into their original language.

• コーヒー would be romanized as ‘coffee’.

(Applies to all entries)

Use a dash with honorific suffixes on names when romanizing.

• お姉さん would be romanized as ‘Onee-san’.

(Applies to all entries)

If the entire name is composed of loanwords, leave the romanized name field empty. Use the translated name field instead.

(Applies to all entries)

Ai-assisted tools are not allowed for audio transcription, as they are extremely inaccurate with languages like Japanese and Chinese and even more so with Vocaloid.

(Applies to all entries)

The album needs to have at least one track with voice synth vocals.

(Applies to all album entries)

The album must have a physical or digital release at some point in time. Sometimes artists “publish” their song collections as a playlist which is insufficient for an album entry.

(Applies to all album entries)

Unofficial, fanmade compilation albums (bootlegs) where the author(s) are not involved in creating the songs are not allowed.

Some widely known fanmade albums are accepted. These are decided on a case-by-case basis by moderators. The tag fanmade compilation album should be included.

(Applies to all album entries)

Album entry should have an empty tracklist, complete tracklist or “tracklist incomplete” tag.

(Applies to all album entries)

Include a PV link, external link or description.

(Applies to all album entries)

All album and song entries require at least one artist credit (custom or a proper entry).

• Use the entry Unknown producer(s) if necessary.

(Applies to all song & album & artist entries)

Do not add artist entries for forbidden artists.

Additionally, do not add song or album entries for forbidden artists if they are the main producer.

(Applies to all artist & song & album entries)

Duplicating the album event(s) on its song entries is redundant, unless the song has a separate PV release.

(Applies to all song & album & event entries)

The Other song type is for album tracks that do not belong to any other song type.

• For example, Commentary.

(Applies to all song & album entries)

Sensitive personal information should not be shared in entries or user profiles.

(Applies to all entries)

Official romanizations do not need to follow VocaDB’s romanization guidelines.

In this case the official romanization tag is required.

(Applies to all entries)

The description should be objective and neutral.

(Applies to all finished entries)

Original language field should not be “unspecified”.

(Applies to all finished entries)

Original name (= default name language) should match with the given primary name, unless tagged with untitled.

(Applies to all finished entries)

The official romanization and/or translation should be prioritized even if it’s against VocaDB’s romanization guidelines.

(Applies to all finished entries)

Entry subtype must be specified for album, artist & song entries.

(Applies to all finished song & album & artist entries)

Merge from lower entry status to higher entry status, or from newer to older entry.

(Applies to all finished entries)

New non-English title translations should not be added without a good reason.

For example, the song entry ECHO should not receive new name/title translations.

Acceptable exceptions:

• Translation is used somewhere elsewhere (add for improved searchability).
• Translation is related to the original name (additional context/value). For example, マトリョシカ is from the Russian word “Матрёшка”, but is also known by its Romanized form “Matryoshka”.

(Applies to all finished entries)

Finished albums should include the full tracklist.

(Applies to all finished album entries)

Include the full album name, even if it seems to have multiple parts.

#VOCALOID CAFETERIA vol.01 Chinese food for example.

(Applies to all finished album entries)

If the album has multiple versions/editions (different tracklist, additional discs, different cover art or a catalog number), create new entries where appropriate and mention these in album descriptions OR in the external links.

Also append the album version the the album name if appropriate: “(Regular Edition)” or “(Kagamine Rin version)“

Also include the multiple editions tag.

(Applies to all finished album entries)

Include the cover art for the album.

If the album has no cover picture, use the no cover art tag instead.

(Applies to all finished album entries)

If the only available cover picture is lower quality, use the temporary cover art tag.

(Applies to all finished album entries)

The “custom track” feature (no song entry) should only be used for out-of-scope tracks made by out-of-scope artists. Secret Sky 2020 (DJ Mix) for example.

(Applies to all finished song & album & artist entries)

Finished albums should specify the publish year.

(Applies to all finished album entries)

Content-based artist/album tags should only be used if a sizable portion of the album/artist’s songs are tagged.

A parent tag can also be used if the song entries are tagged with more specific child tags.

(Applies to all finished song & album & artist entries)

Support status is for crediting artists who play a minor role compared to the main artists in the same role. It should only be used when there’s a clear separation of main and support artists. If there is only one artist in a certain role, the support status should never be used.

Valid examples:

• Backing vocals, e.g., a background chorus when the main vocals are sung by another vocalist.
• Background illustrators (to distinguish them from the main illustrator).

Support status can’t currently be specified to a specific artist role. For example, if a song composer is also responsible for the background image, the support status should not be used.

Effects of support status:

1. Support status removes the artist(s) from the artist string and affects the search through the “Only main songs” filter.

2. Artists with support status never appear in the “artist string” of the song/album.

3. Support artists are shown in parentheses and after all other artists.

(Applies to all finished song & album & artist entries)

Artist credits in the “producer” category must be made with artist entries.

• If the name of the producer is unknown, use the entry Unknown producer(s).

(Applies to all finished song & album entries)

If the remarkable official music PV has the same length as the original entry AND if the original entry has no official upload (album track for example), reuse the original entry.

(Applies to all finished song & album entries)

If the album/song includes in-scope vocals, and if the vocalist is uncredited, the artist entry Unknown vocalist(s) can be used.

• The entry Unknown vocal synth(s) or any of its derived artist entries can also be used to further narrow down the vocalist.

(Applies to all finished song & album & artist entries)

If the voice is only credited by the character name and not further specified, the default choice in most cases should be the base voicebank. In some cases they are labeled with the text “unknown”.

• Hatsune Miku = Hatsune Miku
• Otomachi Una = Otomachi Una (Unknown)

There are some exceptions where the base voicebank should be avoided. For example, Japanese “Xin Hua” songs should be credited with the V4 Japanese voicebank, since the base voicebank is Chinese.

• ”Xin Hua” = “Xin Hua V4 Japanese (Unknown)”

(Applies to all finished artist & album & song entries)

Approved album and song entries should include the romanized title (if applicable).

(Applies to all approved song & album entries)

Approved album and song entries should include the translated title (if applicable).

(Applies to all approved song & album entries)

Approved album and song entries should include all the credited artists in accordance with other crediting rules.

(Applies to all approved song & album & artist entries)