Here's one thing that ukes can do. They can play almost every chord that a guitarist uses.
They are capable of sophisticated harmonies. You can play jazz chords on them.

In the hands of a great artist, almost any instrument can be "real" and effective.

They are wonderful as voice accompaniment. They were very popular in the States in the Twenties because they could reproduce the popular music of the day as did the tenor banjo.
They were portable........and they sound great on the beach.