How to add images and text without too many layers?

I am new to Premiere. But want to create a video where small blocks of photos appear on different parts of the screen and the appearence of each new photo is staggered by a couple of seconds. There are a total of 8 photos. So I added 8 video layers and put each photo into one layer. Now I want to make text appear underneath that will caption the image. I realize I could create 8 more text layers. But I am guessing there is a more elegant and efficient way to do this without heavily increasing the number of layers. Any guidance would be appreciated!