Ain’t Jokin
Does "Ain’t Jokin" in the following context mean "I am not joking" or "there is no joke (it is not a jock but is very serious)?
Context:
"Ain’t Jokin’ is one of Carrie Mae Weems’ earliest photographic series, and established the wry wit, intimate portraiture, and interplay with text for which she is well known. The images in this series are titled after supposedly humorous stereotypes about black culture, which contrast mightily with the portraits themselves. For example: “Black Man Holding Watermelon.”

Question

Answer

"Ain't jokin'" in other words is "not joking".  It can mean that something is very serious or simply just for real. It depends on the context.

I would think "ain't no joke" would be "it is no joke", which does sound more serious to me. But I'm positive this was a deliberate choice by the artist.

EDIT: I wasn't totally clear what I meant. I mean, the choice of "ain't jokin'" instead of something perhaps stronger sounding like "ain't no joke", since the original meaning wasn't clear for the OP. Added a bit more explanation under Lucien's comment.

Answer

I agree with Dave that the choice of "ain't jokin" instead of "not joking" or "I'm not joking" is definitely a choice made by the artist.

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