diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci.yml b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
index d1f6f22e67..992b9c8220 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
@@ -33,6 +33,7 @@ jobs:
       - uses: prometheus/promci@443c7fc2397e946bc9f5029e313a9c3441b9b86d # v0.4.7
       - uses: ./.github/promci/actions/setup_environment
       - run: go test --tags=dedupelabels ./...
+      - run: go test -race ./cmd/prometheus
       - run: GOARCH=386 go test ./...
       - uses: ./.github/promci/actions/check_proto
         with:
diff --git a/cmd/prometheus/main_test.go b/cmd/prometheus/main_test.go
index 0d0ab56eb4..3083be841c 100644
--- a/cmd/prometheus/main_test.go
+++ b/cmd/prometheus/main_test.go
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ import (
 	"fmt"
 	"io"
 	"math"
+	"net/http"
 	"os"
 	"os/exec"
 	"path/filepath"
@@ -33,6 +34,7 @@ import (
 
 	"github.com/alecthomas/kingpin/v2"
 	"github.com/prometheus/client_golang/prometheus"
+	"github.com/prometheus/common/expfmt"
 	"github.com/prometheus/common/model"
 	"github.com/prometheus/common/promslog"
 	"github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
@@ -41,6 +43,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/prometheus/prometheus/model/labels"
 	"github.com/prometheus/prometheus/notifier"
 	"github.com/prometheus/prometheus/rules"
+	"github.com/prometheus/prometheus/util/testutil"
 )
 
 func init() {
@@ -646,3 +649,106 @@ func TestRwProtoMsgFlagParser(t *testing.T) {
 		})
 	}
 }
+
+func getMetricValue(t *testing.T, body io.Reader, metricType model.MetricType, metricName string) (float64, error) {
+	t.Helper()
+
+	p := expfmt.TextParser{}
+	metricFamilies, err := p.TextToMetricFamilies(body)
+	if err != nil {
+		return 0, err
+	}
+	metricFamily, ok := metricFamilies[metricName]
+	if !ok {
+		return 0, errors.New("metric family not found")
+	}
+	metric := metricFamily.GetMetric()
+	if len(metric) != 1 {
+		return 0, errors.New("metric not found")
+	}
+	switch metricType {
+	case model.MetricTypeGauge:
+		return metric[0].GetGauge().GetValue(), nil
+	case model.MetricTypeCounter:
+		return metric[0].GetCounter().GetValue(), nil
+	default:
+		t.Fatalf("metric type %s not supported", metricType)
+	}
+
+	return 0, errors.New("cannot get value")
+}
+
+// TestHeadCompactionWhileScraping verifies that running a head compaction
+// concurrently with a scrape does not trigger the data race described in
+// https://github.com/prometheus/prometheus/issues/16490.
+func TestHeadCompactionWhileScraping(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	// To increase the chance of reproducing the data race
+	for i := range 5 {
+		t.Run(strconv.Itoa(i), func(t *testing.T) {
+			t.Parallel()
+
+			tmpDir := t.TempDir()
+			configFile := filepath.Join(tmpDir, "prometheus.yml")
+
+			port := testutil.RandomUnprivilegedPort(t)
+			config := fmt.Sprintf(`
+scrape_configs:
+  - job_name: 'self1'
+    scrape_interval: 61ms
+    static_configs:
+      - targets: ['localhost:%d']
+  - job_name: 'self2'
+    scrape_interval: 67ms
+    static_configs:
+      - targets: ['localhost:%d']
+`, port, port)
+			os.WriteFile(configFile, []byte(config), 0o777)
+
+			prom := prometheusCommandWithLogging(
+				t,
+				configFile,
+				port,
+				fmt.Sprintf("--storage.tsdb.path=%s", tmpDir),
+				"--storage.tsdb.min-block-duration=100ms",
+			)
+			require.NoError(t, prom.Start())
+
+			require.Eventually(t, func() bool {
+				r, err := http.Get(fmt.Sprintf("http://127.0.0.1:%d/metrics", port))
+				if err != nil {
+					return false
+				}
+				defer r.Body.Close()
+				if r.StatusCode != http.StatusOK {
+					return false
+				}
+				metrics, err := io.ReadAll(r.Body)
+				if err != nil {
+					return false
+				}
+
+				// Wait for some compactions to run
+				compactions, err := getMetricValue(t, bytes.NewReader(metrics), model.MetricTypeCounter, "prometheus_tsdb_compactions_total")
+				if err != nil {
+					return false
+				}
+				if compactions < 3 {
+					return false
+				}
+
+				// Sanity check: Some actual scraping was done.
+				series, err := getMetricValue(t, bytes.NewReader(metrics), model.MetricTypeCounter, "prometheus_tsdb_head_series_created_total")
+				require.NoError(t, err)
+				require.NotZero(t, series)
+
+				// No compaction must have failed
+				failures, err := getMetricValue(t, bytes.NewReader(metrics), model.MetricTypeCounter, "prometheus_tsdb_compactions_failed_total")
+				require.NoError(t, err)
+				require.Zero(t, failures)
+				return true
+			}, 15*time.Second, 500*time.Millisecond)
+		})
+	}
+}
diff --git a/cmd/prometheus/reload_test.go b/cmd/prometheus/reload_test.go
index 18a7ff2ad1..c59e51b316 100644
--- a/cmd/prometheus/reload_test.go
+++ b/cmd/prometheus/reload_test.go
@@ -119,7 +119,8 @@ func runTestSteps(t *testing.T, steps []struct {
 	require.NoError(t, os.WriteFile(configFilePath, []byte(steps[0].configText), 0o644), "Failed to write initial config file")
 
 	port := testutil.RandomUnprivilegedPort(t)
-	runPrometheusWithLogging(t, configFilePath, port)
+	prom := prometheusCommandWithLogging(t, configFilePath, port, "--enable-feature=auto-reload-config", "--config.auto-reload-interval=1s")
+	require.NoError(t, prom.Start())
 
 	baseURL := "http://localhost:" + strconv.Itoa(port)
 	require.Eventually(t, func() bool {
@@ -197,14 +198,20 @@ func captureLogsToTLog(t *testing.T, r io.Reader) {
 	}
 }
 
-func runPrometheusWithLogging(t *testing.T, configFilePath string, port int) {
+func prometheusCommandWithLogging(t *testing.T, configFilePath string, port int, extraArgs ...string) *exec.Cmd {
 	stdoutPipe, stdoutWriter := io.Pipe()
 	stderrPipe, stderrWriter := io.Pipe()
 
 	var wg sync.WaitGroup
 	wg.Add(2)
 
-	prom := exec.Command(promPath, "-test.main", "--enable-feature=auto-reload-config", "--config.file="+configFilePath, "--config.auto-reload-interval=1s", "--web.listen-address=0.0.0.0:"+strconv.Itoa(port))
+	args := []string{
+		"-test.main",
+		"--config.file=" + configFilePath,
+		"--web.listen-address=0.0.0.0:" + strconv.Itoa(port),
+	}
+	args = append(args, extraArgs...)
+	prom := exec.Command(promPath, args...)
 	prom.Stdout = stdoutWriter
 	prom.Stderr = stderrWriter
 
@@ -224,6 +231,5 @@ func runPrometheusWithLogging(t *testing.T, configFilePath string, port int) {
 		stderrWriter.Close()
 		wg.Wait()
 	})
-
-	require.NoError(t, prom.Start())
+	return prom
 }
diff --git a/model/textparse/openmetricsparse.go b/model/textparse/openmetricsparse.go
index 602fe5b5ae..be3ec67cac 100644
--- a/model/textparse/openmetricsparse.go
+++ b/model/textparse/openmetricsparse.go
@@ -199,7 +199,9 @@ func (p *OpenMetricsParser) Comment() []byte {
 
 // Labels writes the labels of the current sample into the passed labels.
 func (p *OpenMetricsParser) Labels(l *labels.Labels) {
-	s := yoloString(p.series)
+	// Defensive copy in case the following keeps a reference.
+	// See https://github.com/prometheus/prometheus/issues/16490
+	s := string(p.series)
 
 	p.builder.Reset()
 	metricName := unreplace(s[p.offsets[0]-p.start : p.offsets[1]-p.start])
diff --git a/model/textparse/promparse.go b/model/textparse/promparse.go
index 4ecd93c37b..c4dcb4aee3 100644
--- a/model/textparse/promparse.go
+++ b/model/textparse/promparse.go
@@ -225,8 +225,9 @@ func (p *PromParser) Comment() []byte {
 
 // Labels writes the labels of the current sample into the passed labels.
 func (p *PromParser) Labels(l *labels.Labels) {
-	s := yoloString(p.series)
-
+	// Defensive copy in case the following keeps a reference.
+	// See https://github.com/prometheus/prometheus/issues/16490
+	s := string(p.series)
 	p.builder.Reset()
 	metricName := unreplace(s[p.offsets[0]-p.start : p.offsets[1]-p.start])
 	p.builder.Add(labels.MetricName, metricName)