Walter Edwards, director of the Wayne State Humanities Center , spoke on "The Notion of Realness in the Success of Tupac Shakur and Bob Marley," at the Soundscapes conference held in Barbados . Edwards said both men began their artistic careers as teenagers, and both considered themselves revolutionaries. "Tupac kept it real by telling stories of the raw brutality of inner-city life as most black contemporary males experience it," said Edwards. " I interpret Marley's uncompromising focus on the plight of subjugated people as manifestation of keepin' it real."