How to put title on black screen at beginning, not over video?

I am trying to make a video for an audio track. I have dropped in the audio and I want to create a collage of stills using Ken Burns and transitions. But I cannot figure out how to make a title page at the beginning of the track. I want to start with a black screen showing the name of the song and artist. If I put in a picture first, I only have the option of putting a title over it, and I cannot adjust the duration of the title. But if I try to drop a title in at the beginning of the audio track, it seems to be impossible (there is a 'not allowed' symbol with a diagonal line).

I would like to be able to place a title page at the beginning and specify how long I want it to last for before the succeeding transition. I am sure I must be missing something really obvious, but I can't figure it out.

Another newbie question: how do I get a visible timeline in seconds and minutes?

Thanks for your help.